China's foreign aid and government-sponsored investment activities

With the world's second largest economy, China has the capacity to engage in substantial programs of economic assistance and government-sponsored investments in 93 emerging-market countries. In the first decade of the 21st century, China has expanded and directed this capacity in these countries for both their benefit and for China's own benefit. Using several data sources and aggregation methods, RAND researchers built a large database, expanding upon prior Congressional Research Service data and enabling the programs to be more fully described and analyzed. Access to the database is available to interested readers who wish to request it from RAND. The RAND research assessed the scale, trends, and composition of these programs in the emerging-market economies of six regions: Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, and East Asia. Finally, the research derived inferences and insights from the analysis that may enhance understanding of the programs and policies pertaining to them. In general, China's use of foreign aid and government-sponsored investment activities has burgeoned in recent years, with emphasis on building infrastructure and increasing supplie