Today is a public holiday in South Africa – Human Rights Day. There’s a certain irony in spending the day focusing on China’s President Xi Jinping’s visit to Vladimir Putin, knee-deep in a human rights disaster.
What one makes of the Ukraine crisis increasingly maps on where one lives. This is made clear by a remarkable new set of polling data recently published by the European Council on Foreign Relations ...
Category: Transportation
China-Linked Group Will Run Angolan Transport Corridor
The Angolan government has signed a $450 million agreement with the Portuguese infrastructure group Mota-Engil to run rail and logistics in the Lobito Transport Corridor, which connects Lobito Port to the mining zone in the southern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Kenya’s New Transport Secretary Criticizes Previous Government’s Deals with China
This week’s confirmation hearing for Kenya’s new Transport Secretary included some revealing details about prominent Chinese projects like the recently inaugurated Nairobi Expressway. Kipchumba Murkomen reacted to widespread complaints about the tolls charged to use the road, a key part of its ...
Massive Supply Chain Disruptions Expected on Key China-Africa Trade Route Due to South African Labor Unrest
Key strategic resources exported via South African ports to China are expected to face severe disruptions in the coming days and weeks in response to the declaration of force majeure by SA's state-run logistics operator Transet in response to the escalating labor strife with its ...
Chinese-Invested Portuguese Company Wins Crucial Logistics Concession in Angola
Portuguese construction major Mota-Engil outbid three Chinese state-owned companies, CITIC, Sinotrans, and CR20, to win a 30-year concession to operate the strategically important Lobito Corridor that connects the copper/cobalt belt in the southern DRC and northern Zambia with the port of Lobito in Angola. ...
Nigeria’s China-Friendly Transport Minister Resigns to Run for President
Rotimi Amaechi formally resigned on Tuesday from his position as Nigeria’s minister of transportation. The move is in preparation to compete in Nigeria’s upcoming presidential election, scheduled for February 2023. During his tenure, Amaechi oversaw the transformation ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
Xi Bets on Global South in Moscow
China’s Economic Slowdown Felt All the Way at the Port of Mombasa While Namibia’s Port Expands to Grab More DRC Cargo
?? Kenyan shipping officials say the lockdowns in China and the long delays for vessels to dock in Chinese ports are having a major impact on the volumes of cargo processed at the Ports of Mombasa and Dar es Salaam. (THE EAST AFRICAN)
Toll Costs in Cambodia a Warning for Kenya?
As Kenyan stakeholders complain because tolls to use their new Nairobi Expressway have increased before the Chinese-built road has even opened, they should spare a thought for their compatriots in Cambodia. While the toll on the Nairobi Expressway will start from about $1 for ...
Nairobi Expressway Will Be the Setting for This Year’s Nairobi City Marathon
Amid excitement and controversy, Kenya is celebrating the opening of its new Nairobi Expressway in the most Kenyan way possible: by running a marathon. It was recently announced that the new Chinese-built highway will be the scenic setting for ...
Glencore Calls Force Majeure on Cobalt Exports as Durban Flooding Worsens Chinese Shipping Crisis
Glencore, the world’s largest cobalt producer, announced that it can’t fulfill its delivery commitments for cobalt hydroxide out of the Democratic Republic of Congo, due to severe flooding in the South African port city of Durban. The majority of cobalt exports from the DRC depart ...
Durban Port is Now Functional After Flooding Shutdown
South Africa’s key port of Durban is functional again after operations were disrupted by deadly flooding last week. The port now has to deal with a backlog of between 8,000 and 9,000 shipping containers. South Africa’s Minister of Public Enterprises, Pravin Gordhan told ...