Mapping Connections: China and Contemporary Development in the Middle East
A research project based at the University of Exeter’s Institute for Arab and Islamic Studies, supporting and mentoring Early Career scholars working on the Middle East’s evolving relationship with China.
Project Updates
Publications, events, talks and news
The Mapping Connections Project is pleased to announce the recent publication of an article by Dr Safa Joudeh published in the journal New Political Economy.
The Mapping Connections Project is pleased to announce the recent publication of an article by Professor Adam Hanieh , published in the journal Development and Change.
The Mapping Connections Project is pleased to announce the recent publication of an article by Omnia Khalil in the magazine Alsifr. Omnia is an ECR on the project and a Lecturer at the Department of Anthropology, and Interdisciplinary Programs, CCNY; Interim Director, International and Global Studies Program, CCNY and Affiliated Professor of the Earth & Environmental Science Doctoral Program, CUNY Graduate Center
The Mapping Connections Project is pleased to announce the recent publication of an article by Dr. Oliver Hayakawa in the journal Mediterranean Politics. Oliver is an ECR on the project and a Lecturer in International Relations on the joint degree programme 'International Governance and Public Policy' delivered in partnership between the University of Keele, UK, and Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU), China.
This paper examines China's overseas industrial zone in Egypt from a local perspective, assessing whether Belt and Road (BRI)-linked zones have effectively responded to local needs and development objectives. China’s industrial parks under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) have facilitated Chinese investment abroad while aiming to support host countries' industrialisation, but their effectiveness varies.
Mapping Connections Early Career Researcher Jie Wang contributed an essay titled “A Chinese Conversation Nādi in Cairo: The Grassroots Popularity of Mandarin Chinese in the Middle East” to the Focus section of Global China Pulse
This working paper explores the new frontiers of green capitalism in the Arabian Peninsula by taking Ibri II as a case study. Ibri II is a solar plant inaugurated in Oman in 2022 with seed funding provided by China. Its establishment has facilitated the development of a land corridor that links Saudi Arabia to Oman through a new highway, connecting Red Sea and Indian Ocean trade routes and reshaping the economic geography of the Arabian Peninsula.
