The global development conversation is stuck in a loop. Advanced economies preach open markets while quietly erecting trade barriers. Institutions created to promote growth increasingly struggle to command legitimacy. For developing countries, the promise of modernisation now feels conditional, delayed, or selectively applied.
It is within this context that China’s approach to modernisation — anchored in shared prosperity and articulated through President Xi Jinping’s governance philosophy — offers a distinct and increasingly relevant framework for the Global South.
China’s modernisation is best understood as a response to historical realities. Unlike Western modernisation, which unfolded through colonial expansion and external capital accumulation, China’s path has been largely inward-looking, prioritising social stability, poverty reduction and long-term planning. Development was not outsourced; it was sequenced, managed and integrated into national objectives.
A central tenet of President Xi’s philosophy is the call for countries to join forces on the path toward modernisation. This reflects an understanding that development today is inherently networked. Industrial capacity depends on logistics corridors, digital platforms, energy systems and regional markets. China’s modernisation narrative, therefore, emphasises partnership over hierarchy and cooperation over dependency.
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This logic is especially visible in Africa. The China-Africa partnership in pursuit of modernisation has evolved from symbolic diplomacy into structural engagement. A clear illustration is Kenya’s Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway. Beyond the headline debates over cost, the railway has reduced cargo transit times, lowered logistics expenses for manufacturers and helped build a domestic skills base in rail operations and engineering. Its real value lies not merely in the track itself, but in how it integrates ports, industrial zones and regional trade.
A second example comes from Ethiopia’s industrial parks, developed with significant Chinese investment and technical input. These parks anchored light manufacturing — particularly in textiles and leather — enabling Ethiopia to move up the value chain rather than remain a raw-material exporter. Crucially, the model combined infrastructure, policy support and market access. The result was rapid job creation and export growth within a relatively short timeframe, demonstrating how targeted industrialisation aligned with national priorities can deliver tangible outcomes.
Another pillar of China’s modernisation vision is its push to advance high-quality development through deeper BRICS cooperation. BRICS is gradually evolving from a symbolic coalition into a functional platform for economic coordination. Its focus on development finance, local-currency trade and infrastructure investment directly addresses constraints faced by emerging economies. For African countries, engagement with BRICS reduces overreliance on any single financial or political bloc and expands strategic options in an increasingly multipolar world.
This approach aligns with China’s broader commitment to promoting a more inclusive and universally beneficial globalisation. Rather than abandoning globalisation, China argues for reforming it. The objective is to move beyond efficiency-only metrics toward resilience, equity and shared gains. In practical terms, this means investing in productive capacity across regions, not merely extracting resources or outsourcing risk. It also means defending multilateral trade rules at a time when major economies increasingly apply them selectively.
Equally significant is the ambition to build what China describes as a just world of common development. This concept challenges the zero-sum mindset that dominates contemporary geopolitical discourse. Development is treated as mutually reinforcing: stable growth in the Global South strengthens global demand, reduces conflict drivers and reinforces supply chains. China’s expanding South-South cooperation — through technology transfer, training programmes and development financing — reflects this worldview.
Underlying these efforts is a push for a more just and equitable global governance system. Existing international institutions continue to reflect outdated power structures that marginalise developing countries. China’s stance is reformist rather than revolutionary, arguing that global governance must evolve to reflect present-day economic realities. For Africa, this position resonates with long-standing calls for fair representation in global financial and political institutions.
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China’s experience also underscores the role of the state as an enabler of modernisation. Markets function most effectively when embedded within coherent development strategies. For countries such as Kenya, the lesson is not replication but adaptation — strengthening institutions, maintaining policy coherence and anchoring growth in long-term developmental goals.
Ultimately, China’s modernisation philosophy has reframed the development debate. It shifts attention from abstract rankings to lived outcomes, from short-term growth spikes to sustained social progress. In a world drifting toward fragmentation, its emphasis on cooperation, inclusivity and shared prosperity offers a counterweight to protectionism and unilateralism. Modernisation, as China presents it, is about designing a future rooted in one’s own history while engaging the world on equal terms.