Question by project_save_3178: How much money does China donate towards third world countries annually?
I’m currently researching the amount of money which various nations donate towards developing nations for the purpose of increasing quality of life; but I can’t seem to find any information on how much money China donates towards this cause. Does anyone know and can they please cite the information? Thanks.
Best answer:
Answer by AreJay
If you can’t find it I won’t try. China does have an interesting philosophy towards developing countries. The main thought over there, based on Confucian teachings, is that those in developing countries, and especially the poorest, are barbarians and China should not put forth effort to enlighten them. This is based off the traditional schools where masters would not advertise and try to find students but would only let students come to the teachers to learn. This is of course in direct contrast to Western ideas that it is everyones duty to raise developing countries up to better living. Based on this I’d bet China gives very little money to developing countries.
I read this in an article a few weeks ago and then talked to an econ professor who is an expert on China and a friend who has been to China several times and is a Chinese and Asian Studies major who agreed and put it in terms of American values that have deep roots often forgotten like the puritan work ethic in America. This is an excerpt from the article:
He explains, for example, that the Chinese tradition rejects the idea that human life has an intrinsic value. “Not everyone’s life is equal,” he maintains. “[A]n uncivilized person — a barbarian — his life is less meaningful.” It follows, Yan says, that a powerful China would see no strong argument for combating a global health crisis such as AIDS. Barbarians are not worth saving.
“Might a powerful China want to help barbarians attain a state of civility? Yan says no: In the Christian tradition, missionaries strive to make converts, but in the Confucian tradition, teachers are not supposed to recruit pupils. In the Chinese view, barbarians are welcome to learn from China’s example, but if they don’t, that’s their concern. China will do business with barbarians — think Zimbabwe, Burma or Sudan — but it will not try to change them.”
– Sebastian Mallaby, “For Rising China, an Identity Crisis” The Washington Post March 26th 2010
What do you think? Answer below!
You can’t find the information because you read only English.
The English information are usually American or Europe-centered and don’t tell much about China.
Well, I’d say Chinese effort focus in Africa and Southeast Asia. If you go to Africa, you’d see China’s image is very good there, for they don’t receive much anti-China propaganda from the west, and most of all, China helped a lot with the infrastructures of Africa. They have hospital teams, build dams, roads in almost every country in Africa, not to mention the railway connecting Tanzania and Zambia which was a huge project built free by the Chinese with losses of Chinese workers’ lives.
Since the 90s, China stopped routine donation to countries with a GDP per capita superior to China, which are many, since that although China ranks 2nd in the world on GDP, but only ranks around 100th among the almost 200 countries in the world when it comes to GDP per capita. It mostly provided service support after that.