Africa is the main destination of SSC flows from Arab donors and China. Arab donors have a much established presence in Africa, especially in Arab countries in Northern Africa, compared to other donors. China has been providing aid to African countries
since the 1950s, but its expanding operations in the continent in the context of Chinese and African growth is of a more recent vintage. African countries are also among the main recipients of Indian and Brazilian SSC. India and Brazil have a smaller presence in the continent, but their assistance is increasing and gaining attention of late. Bolivia, Cuba, Malaysia and Thailand also provide SSC to the region, but in scales that are relatively very small (UNCTAD, 2010).

Some of the SSC providers, particularly with China and India, have established forums and dialogue platforms and are generally supported by high-level official visits. These forums have been venues for African countries and SSC providers to agree on areas of cooperation. The triennial Forum on China and African Cooperation (FOCAC), launched in 2000, has become the platform for dialogue
between African countries and China. The meetings are mostly at the ministerial level, although they are often attended by heads of state and government. The latest FOCAC Ministerial Conference was held in Beijing in July 2012. China uses FOCAC as a platform for making commitments to the region. During the 5th FOCAC Summit in July 2012, China announced $20 billion in credit lines over three years to African countries support mainly the development of infrastructure, agriculture, manufacturing, and development of small and medium-sized enterprises. India meanwhile launched the triennial India-Africa Forum in 2008. In the 2nd India-Africa Forum Summit in 2011, India pledged to extend $5.4 billion in lines of credit to African countries until 2014.