China's Development Playbook: A Test for European Democracy Support

As Western aid recedes with the United States winding down USAID and Europe shifting funds from development to defence, China is rapidly filling the donor vacuum with evolving, alternative development models. Moving away from large, state-led lending, Beijing is now focusing more on commercially oriented infrastructure financing and blended-finance models, outpacing the early rollout of the EU's Global Gateway initiative.

China's Development Playbook: A Test for European Democracy Support by the European Democracy Hub and Demo Finland examines China’s growing influence in development financing, political-party engagement, media development, and digital technology cooperation. It invites European policymakers and the democracy-support community to reflect on what this means for Europe’s role as a democracy-supporting development partner. How can Europe best balance its competition with China?

Link: https://europeandemocracyhub.epd.eu/chinas-development-playbook/