Beijing has offered 12,000 university scholarships to African students for the next academic year, more than all western countries combined, reports the Financial Times in today’s issue.
According to UNESCO’s Global Annual Education Report, China offered 12,000 university scholarships to African students for the next academic year, to support their studies at Chinese universities. An offer higher than that made by all Western countries, notes the Financial Times report. To give you an idea, the UK government offers about 1100 scholarships annually to African students, while the German and French governments offer around 600 each and European Union programs offer 300.
The Financial Times’ analysis is that this is a demonstration of light power made by China, together with the economic investment it makes in Africa, has its effect. “Chinese aid is regionally specific and tends to be defined by the One Track, One Route strategy,” said Professor Simon Marginson, from Oxford University. “One of the characteristics of China’s policy, compared to that of the United Kingdom, is long-term continuity,” he emphasized.
