Many foreign countries have even today a strong influence in Africa. There are many natural resources which companies and countries try to get their hands on. 100 years ago the Western countries were the dominate countries, today it seems that China is taking over that control. The high level of corruption in Africa makes them very vulnerable for foreign influence with deep pockets.
I would say that China is able to penetrate the African market, because they are able to offer much better deals for the African people. The Western powers have been pillaging Africa ever since they established the colonies. Colonial powers such as France and the Great Britain have imposed regime changes and military coups, whenever an African leader would challenge their supremacy. Some of the best leaders Africa ever produced, such as Thomas Sankara and Patrice Lumumba were killed by the colonial powers. In many of the African nations, the first major infrastructural projects started only when the Chinese started investing. Westerners were looting the resources without giving back anything. China on the other hand gives back at least 10% of what they are looting.
in my mind, blockchain and its trustworthy usage can help in fair distribution of Africa resources to African people. The problem is not the foreign takeover of the market, but the wide spread of corruption everywhere