Introduction

In a world of constant change and in which international economic empires aspire to total control of the economic policy of developing countries, Africa is now more than ever in a very vulnerable position.
On the one hand, the former metropolises that for centuries and up to the present have plundered and exploited the African continent without any respect, now come with a ''new suit'', with a new facet of ''partners'' or allies for ''international cooperation'', a model of cooperation in which only what the biggest and most armed countries say matters, the same countries that have divided Africa and Africans into a bunch of tiny countries that cannot even agree; a cooperation based on systematically ignoring the real needs of the African continent because, in the end, it is only the sole responsibility of the African Peoples and their leaders.
On the other hand, the constant international conflicts that demand more and more raw materials and whose massive export and the institutionalized corruption that accompanies it greatly limit the possibilities of growth and development of African nations.
Thus, the 21st century is only the beginning of an era in which Africa must either define its political and economic independence towards its industrial development for the prosperity of the African peoples or suffer the consequences of submission to the colonial empires that now claim to be ''friends of Africa''.
Be that as it may, China's role in Africa's history and present is and will be crucial, but at the same time raises many questions.
Africa needs allies, not fake friends, and that has been the result of the sad history since the first contacts with Europeans on the African continent. They came neither to do good, nor to stay, but to take everything by land, sea and air, and Africa cannot go through that again, nor allow it to continue to happen, no matter who it may concern.
The case of China is even more worrying for many because its hunger for raw materials is more voracious and has no limits, but cooperation with the Asian giant is leaving along its path unprecedented development and progress in many African countries.
Indeed, between 2001 and 2018 alone, China lent approximately $126 billion to African countries, and invested $41 billion in FDI (Foreign Direct Investment), which has transformed many African nations from poverty and extreme underdevelopment into 'rays' of hope.
Unlike the traditional despoilers of the African continent and promoters of its systematic underdevelopment, China desires industrialization, progress and economic growth for Africa, but for this to materialize, it must first be a credible reality in the minds of Africans.
There is no point in wishing Africa well if Africans prefer to remain subservient to the role that racism and unfair trade - if you can even call it trade - has bequeathed to them.
Why is China in Africa?
Well, you will find the answer in this book.
Thank you for reading these lines.
Javier Clemente Engonga.
14.07.2022