Engaging with China’s Soft Power in Zimbabwe: Harare Citizens’ Perceptions of China-Zimbabwe Relations

Abstract

Research and debate on the emerging Sino-Zimbabwean relations have mainly focused on the scope and size of China’s economic presence but not on how China is perceived by African media and locals in places it is investing in (Banda, 2009). The official claims that China’s interventions are benefiting Africans are being challenged by local accounts of opposition to China’s increased presence. This chapter focuses on how China’s soft power is perceived and received in Zimbabwe, a key transitional nation with an official “Look East” policy. By analyzing views of “ordinary” citizens in Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital city, on the subject of China’s interventions, this research provides a unique account of the emerging perceptions of China in the country.