African perspectives on China in Africa - book review

In November 2006 almost every African head of state attended the largest international summit meeting ever held in Beijing. The event highlighted just how important Africa has become to China's future economic growth - something that the Western media is only just starting to wake up to. One of the consequences of China's recent economic boom has been a parallel boom in imports. The export industries that power China's growth need raw materials, fuel and components that the rest of the Chinese economy can't supply.