Over the last two decades, China has emerged as Africa’s largest bilateral official creditor, alongside an increasingly diverse set of creditors from other emerging economies as well as the private sector. Due to the magnitude of its lending, China will play an important role in debt restructuring for several African countries experiencing difficulties in repaying their debts due to the COVID-19 shock, in addition to debt vulnerabilities existing before the pandemic.

This primer aims to serve as a guide for African policymakers, particularly in the debt or aid management office, seeking to understand China’s approach to sovereign lending and debt restructuring. We draw on the most recent knowledge and literature on China that is publicly available from reputable sources, particularly academia and think-tanks, as well as selected interviews with experts in this area.