"The influence of China on Guinea-Bissau is undeniable, especially in economic terms," Bissau-Guinean sociologist and China expert, Diamantino Lopes, said in an interview with DW. Since the country's independence from Portugal five decades ago, almost all infrastructure measures have been carried out and financed by the Chinese, the analyst added.

"The government palace, the justice building, the parliament, the renovation of the Palace of the Republic, the 13-kilometer (8-mile) highway between the airport and Safim, the national stadium in Bissau, or the new fishing port in Bandim — the Chinese control almost everything here," Lopes explained.

This week, Guinea-Bissau's President Umaro Sissoco Embalo is in China with a high-ranking delegation. During the three-day visit, cooperation between the two countries is expected to be "further developed and intensified."

Bissau and Beijing are already collaborating in the areas of education, health, agriculture, infrastructure, fisheries and defense. Ahead of the state visit, the next joint projects were announced: China will finance a large conference center for the upcoming rotating presidency of Guinea-Bissau in the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP).

Additionally, 300 kilometers of roads will be renovated. Furthermore, a new university campus for 12,000 students will be constructed, among other investments, the Bissau-Guinean president announced.

"Before we set off for Beijing, China had already announced a donation of $27.5 million (€25.4 million) for Guinea-Bissau," said Embalo, who is currently ruling his country by special decree, bypassing parliament after having dissolved it in December. A date for the upcoming parliamentary elections has not yet been set.

Without Beijing's support, practically nothing works in Guinea-Bissau: China is currently building the country's only highway, which connects the international airport with the town of........

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