China–Madagascar relations refer to the bilateral relations between China and Madagascar. China and Madagascar established diplomatic relations on November 6, 1972.[1]: 347 China has an embassy in Antananarivo and Madagascar has an embassy in Beijing.
Diplomatic relations
The People's Republic of China and Madagascar established diplomatic ties on 6 November 1972. The two governments signed a trade agreement[2] in January 1974, a trade, economic and technical cooperation agreement[3] in June 1995, an agreement on the establishment of a mixed commission for economic and commercial cooperation and an agreement on bilateral investment promotion and protection[4] in November 2005.[5]
In March 2017, China and Madagascar established a comprehensive cooperation partnership, and the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on the joint promotion of the Belt and Road Initiative. Madagascar is among the first African countries to sign a cooperation document on BRI with China.[5]
According to the Malagasy customs, China has been Madagascar's biggest trading partner and biggest source of import since 2015. In 2020, the bilateral trade in goods reached US$930 million, accounting for 18.1% of Madagascar's total foreign trade.[5]
According to China's Ministry of Commerce, the flow of China's direct investment to Madagascar was US$136 million in 2020 and the stock of investment has reached US$391 million at the end of 2020.[8] The Chinese enterprises in Madagascar have carried out corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities, contributing to the country's economic, social development and improving people's livelihood.[9]
Development cooperation
Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1972, China has assisted Madagascar in a number of economic and social projects, including the construction of a Primary School for China-Africa Friendship, the construction of and technical support to the Sports and Cultural Palace, the International Conference Center at Ivato, and the Anosiala Hospital.[10] In 1975, China agreed to provide Madagascar with aid for the development of the Moramanga-Andranonampango Highway.[11]: 40 The highway was funded with an interest-free loan from China and was completed in 1985.[11]: 40
In recent years, China has continued supporting the Chinese medical mission[12] and technical experts to Madagascar, deepened human resources development cooperation, and carried out a series of infrastructure and social projects, such as the expressway between Ivato Airport and the Boulevard de l'Europe, the Tsarasaotra-Ivato expressway, the "Eggs Road",[13] well-drilling, etc.[5] The assistance and cooperation have contributed to the socio-economic recovery of Madagascar and brought tangible benefits to the Malagasy people.[14]
In early 2019, the newly inaugurated President Rajoelina inspected the 200 well-drilling project in the south,[15] and attended the inauguration ceremonies of the extension and renovation project of the expressway linking Port Toamasina and the RN2[16] and the rehabilitation project of the RN5A in the north.[17]
From 2000 to 2011, there were approximately 19 Chinese official development finance projects identified in Madagascar through various media reports.[18] These projects range from developing a new 40.5 MW hydroelectric plant in the Betsiboka River basin with a loan from the Chinese Export Import Bank,[19] to the construction of an international conference center in Antananarivo.[20]
^Austin Strange, Bradley C. Parks, Michael J. Tierney, Andreas Fuchs, Axel Dreher, and Vijaya Ramachandran. 2013. China’s Development Finance to Africa: A Media-Based Approach to Data Collection. CGD Working Paper 323. Washington DC: Center for Global Development.[1]