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China’s political and economic engagement in Africa has increased over the last two decades, resulting in a significant increase in Chinese foreign direct investment (CFDI) into the region. In this study, the link between CFDI and the productivity of labour is investigated in 22 sub-Saharan African countries from 2003 to 2020. The study utilised panel cointegration techniques that are suitable in the absence of cross-sectional dependence and take stationarity and long-run relationships into consideration. The findings from the panel dynamic ordinary least squares (OLS) and the fully modified OLS revealed that CFDI is important for driving labour productivity in the long run. In the short run, however, the study finds no significant influence of CFDI on labour productivity. Further findings reveal that CFDI Granger causes labour productivity. Additionally, the study finds that capital per labour is a necessity for boosting the productivity of labour in the region. The study recommends that African countries strengthen investment promotion agencies that actively facilitate CFDI and also negotiate favourable trade and investment agreements with China that promote technology transfer and skills development.JEL Codes:C23, F21, J24

This study complements existing literature by examining the short-run heterogeneous and long-run homogeneous impacts of foreign direct investment (FDI) and international trade on ecological footprints (EF) in 37 African countries for the period 1990 to 2019. Utilizing the pooled mean group estimator, our findings show considerable heterogeneity in the impact of FDI and international trade on EF in the short-run. In particular, the findings revealed that while FDI increases EF in Botswana, Egypt, and Mauritania, it reduces EF in Algeria, Comoros, Gambia, and Togo. Furthermore, the findings revealed that international trade increases EF in Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, and Eswatini but reduces EF in Algeria, Mauritania, and Morocco. Nonetheless, the study finds that in the long-run, FDI significantly increases EF while international trade has no significant influence on the environment. The study further finds economic growth and population to be significant in propping up EF in the long-run. Long-run robustness test employing the method of moment quantile regression revealed that FDI influence on EF is more evident in lower quantiles compared to higher quantiles, and that there is no evidence that international trade influences EF across all quantiles. The study recommends country specific policy recommendations in the short-run, and in the long-run, to implement policies and regulations that make it mandatory for foreign investors to adopt green and renewable energy. These measures will contribute to environmental sustainability and foster an eco-friendlier economic development path.