Trilateral development cooperation between the European Union, China and Africa: what prospects for South Africa?

This discussion paper aims at advancing the debate around trilateral development cooperation between the European Union (EU), China and Africa. The discussion on trilateral development cooperation between these three actors considers the role of the EU as a traditional donor and that of China as an emerging donor, while failing to grasp the potential of African actors. This paper addresses this analytical gap by examining the role of South Africa in a potential trilateral development partnership with the EU and China. Analysing the case study of South Africa, this paper also discusses whether trilateral development cooperation could possibly emerge as an alternative policy tool to existing bilateral and multilateral collaboration efforts between the EU and China in fostering African development.