The contemporary Chinese engagement in Africa dates back to the 1950's, and it has gained momentum in the last two decades. The Chinese presence in African countries has been getting more and more visible; not only the number of Chinese investments in the area and international agreements has been increasing, but also the size of the Chinese diaspora in the region has grown. China has been looking for new sources of natural resources and markets on which the 'made in China' goods would be welcomed, therefore it spares no efforts to establish and maintain possibly good relationships with Africa, especially with political elites of African countries. At first, the Chinese expansion was supported by the country's image of an older brother, a co-victim of the Western domination, and a example to be followed on the the path leading to development. This image, however, has started to be covered with some spots and shadows, caused by various Chinese activities. In this book we aimed to sketch the image of China and the Chinese in Zambia and Angola, presented by textual media and citizens of these countries, and to trace the most important factors influencing it. Moreover, we brought up some possible consequences of the prevalence of a particular – positive or negative – image for the future development of the Chinese expansion in the region.To obtain the possibly detailed image, we decided to combine quantitative and qualitative analysis of media content with results of our field work conducted in Africa.

The contemporary Chinese engagement in Africa dates back to the 1950's, and it has gained momentum in the last two decades. The Chinese presence in African countries has been getting more and more visible; not only the number of Chinese investments in the area and international agreements has been increasing, but also the size of the Chinese diaspora in the region has grown. China has been looking for new sources of natural resources and markets on which the 'made in China' goods would be welcomed, therefore it spares no efforts to establish and maintain possibly good relationships with Africa, especially with political elites of African countries. At first, the Chinese expansion was supported by the country's image of an older brother, a co-victim of the Western domination, and a example to be followed on the the path leading to development. This image, however, has started to be covered with some spots and shadows, caused by various Chinese activities. In this book we aimed to sketch the image of China and the Chinese in Zambia and Angola, presented by textual media and citizens of these countries, and to trace the most important factors influencing it. Moreover, we brought up some possible consequences of the prevalence of a particular – positive or negative – image for the future development of the Chinese expansion in the region.To obtain the possibly detailed image, we decided to combine quantitative and qualitative analysis of media content with results of our field work conducted in Africa.