Role of China & India as development partners in Africa: A critique of neo-colonialism

Emerging economies like China and India with their substantial GDP growth rate has transpired them to become donors and investors worldwide and especially in Africa. Western nations have injected an estimated $1.8 Trillion of aid and investment (A&I) money into Africa since 1950s but poverty has only increased with no positive effect on growth. Various questions hounding the world is whether Africa is a black hole where the A&I money vanish? How and why it will be very contemptuous on any country's part to treat Africa as a pariah continent? and why the principle of triage is unwarranted to put an end to their involvement in the continent. A paternalistic approach is evident in these aid handouts where no consideration is paid to the needs of the recipients. A request driven A&I is the need of Africa which must be met by its donors. Emerging economies have come up as attractive development partners for many African countries with a view that they understand Africa's development aspirations. They veritably abstain from the use of the term aid as it carries colonial connotations and prefer themselves as development partners. This paper will discuss the role of China and India as development partners to Africa and their portrayal as investment powerhouses. The intention of this paper is to dissuade the idea of neo-colonialism and contribute a balanced view to various controversies associated with China's and India's presence in Africa.