After several years of declining funding, the African end of the Belt and Road Initiative seems to be roaring back. The newest Griffith University/Green Development Finance Center data on the Belt and Road Initiative shows that engagement with Africa jumped by 395%, while a few big projects boosted engagement in Nigeria alone more than twelvefold.
These shifts indicate a window of opportunity for African electrification. 60% of Africans still ...
Category: Development
Stop Calling the Lobito Corridor a U.S. Gambit Against China
There’s a lazy but geopolitically irresistible allure in branding Angola’s Lobito Corridor as a U.S. bid to blunt China’s influence in Africa and the region’s mineral supply chains. I get why the framing sticks: it’s neat, dramatic, and easy to sell. ...
Lobito Corridor Not Intended to Counter China in Africa, Says New CEO
The Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR) corridor is purely a commercial venture with “zero geopolitical considerations," said the new CEO, Nicholas Fournier, in an interview with the South China Morning Post newspaper. Fournier said the upgrade of the massive 1,800km-long railway that ends ...
China Talks BRI, Mining with Afghanistan, Pakistan
China invited Afghanistan to formally join its Belt and Road Initiative and would like to deepen cooperation on mining. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited the Afghan capital of Kabul for talks with Taliban government leaders. He also participated in trilateral talks with Afghan and Pakistani counterparts. ...
Chinese Company Leads Africa’s First Cross-Border Standard Gauge Railway Expansion
China Railway Group Limited (CREC) is heading the construction of a new transfrontier rail line between Tanzania and Burundi. Construction of the Uvinza–Musongati line was officially inaugurated during a ceremony on Saturday. The 1,435-kilometer electrified line will provide landlocked Burundi ...
Why Students From China Are Picking Malaysia Over Traditional Destinations
By Koh Sin Yee Since at least 2019, China has become Malaysia’s top source of international students, overtaking traditional sources such as Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Pakistan. In 2023, a total of 44,043 Chinese students constituted
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
‘If You Want to Get Rich, Build a Road.’ Testing China’s Theory in Africa
There's a Chinese proverb that says, “If you want to get rich, build a road first.” That philosophy has guided China's development strategy in Africa for much of the past 25 years, that's led to the construction of more than 100,000km ...
CK Hutchison Executive Defends Delay in Panama Ports Deal
A top executive at CK Hutchison on Thursday brushed off the delay in offloading its Panama Canal ports as "not particularly troublesome", as the Hong Kong conglomerate reported its half-year earnings. The firm in March proposed the sale of its global ...
Cambodia’s New Chinese-Built Capital Airport Set to Open
Cambodian aviation authorities will conduct a final test flight on Friday at the country's massive new airport ahead of the official opening on September 9th. It took Chinese contractors five years to build the new facility that includes a stunning nine-ton, ...
China’s Lending to the Global South Has Been Growing More Commercial
By Yunnan Chen Development finance has been embattled of late. Aid cutbacks have raised alarm over financing for climate and development goals. The most notable example is the egregious dismantling of the US Agency for ...
China Starts Brunei Muara Port Expansion to Double Capacity
China has begun a US$278 million worth of Brunei’s Muara Port expansion, the country’s leading maritime gateway, in a push to deepen Southeast Asia trade links as Chinese exports to the region climb and shipments to the U.S. slide. Details: ...
Eswatini Builds Dam With Chinese Firm Despite Taiwan Ties
In a notable show of pragmatism, Eswatini, the only African country that maintains formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, is working with Sinohydro, one of China’s largest state-owned construction firms.
China’s Belt and Road Shatters Expectations With Record Activity
For much of the past two years, we've been told to expect a slimmer, more austere Belt and Road under the new "Small Yet Beautiful" mantra. The days of Chinese mega deals across the Global South were over... or so we ...