Meet the 2024-2025 Africa-China Initiative Post Doctoral Fellow!

Dr. Asma Amina Belem joins the African Studies Program from the National Cheng-Chi University in Taiwan, where she received a PhD in Development Studies and a master’s degree in Applied Economics and Social Development. Dr. Belem, now a fellow for Georgetown’s Africa-China Initiative (ACI), is enriching our program with her expertise in Chinese engagement in Africa, having previously researched Chinese medical cooperation with African States, environmental civil society mobilization against Chinese-funded projects, and the prospects of China’s cooperation with the Economic Community of West African States to develop regional infrastructure projects. A Burkinabé, Dr. Belem also brings us her extensive knowledge in languages, as she is fluent in French, Chinese, English, Mooré and Dioula. 

Her research brings to light the role of recipients’ domestic politics in shaping foreign aid relationships with China, and deepens understanding of its engagement with Francophone Africa countries. Her work has been featured in the Canadian Journal of African Studies and Prospect & Exploration.

On September 25th, Dr. Belem hosted her first event with the ACI presenting her research on environmental governance and civil society, focusing on the case of the Kua Forest in Burkina Faso. Speaking to Georgetown and Howard University students and faculty at Georgetown’s McGhee Library, Dr. Belem detailed environmental issues that emerged from the proposed construction of a Chinese-funded hospital in Burkina Faso. She emphasized the role of the domestic political context and civil society in the formation of movements that aimed to change the site of the hospital.