China offers increased military aid and training to Africa to strengthen its security ties.

China has offered to provide additional military aid and training to African countries as it seeks to strengthen its security ties in the face of multiple challenges on the continent. President Xi Jinping made this offer—which includes 1 billion yuan ($140.5 million) in military aid and training for 6,000 soldiers and 1,000 police officers—during a speech marking the opening of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit on Thursday, September 5. Beijing will also invite 500 young military officers to China to participate in exercises and patrols with their African counterparts and assist in demining efforts, a major concern for some countries due to past and ongoing conflicts.
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Soldiers of Chinese participating troops introduce their weapons and equipment to their Tanzanian counterparts.(Picture source: Chinese MoD)

Details of the package and the countries that will benefit have not yet been announced, but the commitment contained more specifics than the one made at a previous summit in 2021, which included an offer to participate in security projects and joint training exercises on counterterrorism and peacekeeping. However, unlike in 2021, Xi did not mention efforts to control the spread of small arms.

China has intensified its military engagement with African countries in recent years as it competes for influence with the United States. Last year, its military diplomacy ranked Africa second only to Southeast Asia in terms of the number of "high-level" meetings, according to the Asia Society Policy Institute think tank. In recent months, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has participated in a series of exercises with African countries, including an anti-terrorism exercise with Tanzania and Mozambique last month.

China also took part in a naval exercise with Russia and South Africa earlier this year, which drew particular scrutiny due to South Africa's role as a strategic partner of the United States. China has long been a major destination for African military training, including for hundreds of senior commanders trained in PLA institutions. It was also the largest supplier of arms to sub-Saharan Africa between 2019 and 2023, providing 19% of total arms imports and narrowly surpassing Russia, which had long held the top spot and accounted for 17% of imports during this period, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. In addition to small arms, China is a major supplier of equipment such as drones, tanks, and armored vehicles.

China's long-term focus on Africa means it does not view the continent solely as "a source of strategic resources," but it is also "trying to build political relationships and listen to the views and interests of African elites that were not a top priority for most Western countries." China's influence also has a security dimension, reflected in its military aid. Only now is the West seriously attempting to counter China’s influence by listening to Africa’s voice... The question is whether such efforts are too little, too late. China has provided some form of military aid to nearly every country on the continent as it seeks to strengthen ties and protect its economic interests.

At the end of August 2024, the PLA donated a new set of equipment—mainly howitzers and their accessories—to Benin, which has seen an increase in militant attacks as part of the broader Islamist insurgency across West Africa. Djibouti, in the Horn of Africa, is also home to China's first overseas naval base, and PLA warships regularly participate in anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia.

Military support to Africa could be part of Beijing’s use of the Belt and Road Initiative to gain greater control and presence in geostrategically important regions.

Zimbabwean troops pose in font of equipment supplied by China. ( Picture source: Zimbabwe’s Office of the President and Cabinet)