Zhou Jinyan

The Sino-Angola relations are described by some observers with the simple narrative of “oil-for-infrastructure” model, which overlooks the China-Angola cooperation in livelihood areas, especially agriculture. Since 2009, with the credit line supported by China Development Bank and China Exim Bank, China has begun the construction of seven comprehensive agricultural projects in Angola. All seven farms are managed under a similar model based on a five-year contract signed by Chinese partner companies and the Angolan Ministry of Agriculture, represented by its state-owned enterprise Gesterra. Under the one-stop farm style, China not only constructs farms, irrigation facilities, grain drying, food storage, and processing plants, but also helps Angola train skilled personnel and farm managers. Taking the year of 2016 as a dividing line, China’s agricultural cooperation model with Angola is gradually changing. First, China’s agriculture projects in Angola are shifting from large-scale agricultural farm construction to market-oriented agricultural investment. Second, besides state-owned enterprises, there are increasingly more Chinese private enterprises seeking business opportunities in Angola’s agriculture, for example Jiangsu Jiangzhou Agriculture Scientific Development Company.