Depending on who you believe, China is helping Africa down the path of development in a way the West never has, or else they’re simply the latest in a long line of colonial and neo-colonial exploiters of the world’s poorest continent. Either way, China’s presence in Africa is nothing new – Associate Professor of International Development at American University Deborah Brautigam has been researching China-Africa relations long before it occurred to most academics and policy-makers to look.

Prior to her talk at the Bookworm tomorrow (Tuesday, July 20), Christine Laskowski talked to Professor Brautigam about her new book The Dragon’s Gift: The Real Story of China in Africa.