A foreign policy expert, Professor Yusuf Zoaka, has dismissed claims that the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is China’s form of neocolonialism aimed at plunging developing countries into a debt trap.
Some Western nations had accused the Chinese government of using the BRI as “debt trap diplomacy” designed to give China leverage over other countries and even seize their infrastructure and resources.
But speaking to newsmen in Abuja as part of activities marking the 3rd Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, the academic don described the claims as mere propaganda to tarnish China’s image.
“The problem with the West is that they have been maligning China. They see China as a strong competitor looking for space within the globe. China has over 1.4 billion people with an economy of over $17 trillion. The BRI has a target of $30 trillion, and China has spent only $4 trillion. China desires a shared prosperity through a global economy that the BRI seek to create.
“China is not interested in dominating any country. They don’t choose who to be friends with. For the West, you have to support their programs before they can give you aid, and the assistance in most cases has stringent conditions. We have collected loans from the IMF, World Bank, and AfDB but have not seen anything tangible done with those funds.
“But the reverse is the case with the Chinese. The railways and other projects are here for us to see. The interest rate on Chinese loans is low and in some cases, the Chinese government have written off debts from countries that cannot pay back.
“So stories that China is taking over assets of countries that cannot meet their loan obligations is mere propaganda by the West to frighten African nations from accessing Chinese loans.”
In 2013, President Xi Jinping unveiled the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global infrastructure development strategy to invest in more than 150 countries and international organizations.
The initiative is the largest infrastructure and investment project in history, covering more than 150 countries, with China spending over $4 trillion on infrastructural investments as of 2023.
Through the BRI, China has made its mark worldwide by funding over 2,900 projects in roads, railways, bridges, hospitals, schools and airports in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas, thus promoting trade and economic development of member countries.
Chinese state-owned banks provide the funds needed to execute projects under the BRI, with beneficiaries expected to pay back within an agreed period.
