Contested Chinese Investment in Africa: The Case of Dam Construction in Upemba National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Abstract

The quest for natural resource extraction in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to attract foreign investors, with an unprecedented enthusiasm in the agricultural, mining, hydro, and forestry sectors. The DRC hosts more than 60% of the dense forests of the Congo Basin, the second-largest tropical forest on the planet after the Amazon, with a very rich biodiversity. There is now significant Chinese investment in the DRC. Ongoing debate about Chinese investments in Africa continues to divide scholars and policymakers, particularly around whether China’s approach to extracting natural resources in Africa differs from that of the West. In this context, this chapter examines critically the ongoing construction of a hydropower electricity dam called Sombwe, in and around Upemba National Park, by a Chinese firm (Kipay Investments) in Lualaba Province in the DRC. It demonstrates the likely negative implications of this particular investment and the controversies it has stirred up. More specifically, while the Chinese investors and the DRC government speak glowingly about the economic spinoffs emerging from the dam’s construction, civil society organisations alongside local villagers express concerns about the undercutting of ecosystem and livelihood sustainability. In offering an analysis of the politics of dam construction in the DRC, this chapter contributes to the wider debates about China’s presence in Africa.