Chinese appetite erases donkeys from F/town

The Europeans, historians add, were driven by commercial interests among others, competing to plunder the continent’s resources. Many years later and the Chinese have joined the fray. Across the continent, the Oriental giant is muscling into economic, trade and aid relationships.  Besides these, however, the Chinese are also interested in something else: the scramble for the African donkey.

The Chinese manufacture highly valuable traditional medicines from donkey products, in a multibillion US dollar industry in the Asian country. Countries across the continent have banned donkey exports and closed down abattoirs and farms, as the scramble for the humble beast has become frenzied, marked by callous treatment of the animals and drying up of populations.