Chinese President Xi Jinping, at the opening of a major summit, announced to offer $60bn of financial support to African countries having “no political strings attached”. He explicated that the figure was inclusive of $15bn of grants, interest-free loans and concessional loans, a credit line of $20bn, $10 bn for development financing and $5bn to buy imports from the continent.
China-Africa cooperation must give Chinese and African people tangible benefits and successes that can be seen, that can be felt. Xinping added, “Chinese companies will be encouraged to invest no less than $10bn in African countries in the next three years.”
This substantial scheme Belt and Road initiative are executed with an aim to improve China’s access in the foreign markets and resources along with augmenting Beijing’s influence abroad as it is continuously knocked for its debt-heavy projects abroad.
Jinping said, “Belt and Road is not a scheme to form an exclusive club or bloc against others. Rather it is about greater openness, sharing and mutual benefit.”
The financial aid is, as stated by Jinping, for eight initiatives for the forthcoming three years in zones like industrial promotion, infrastructure construction, and scholarship for African youth. Elucidating about underdeveloped, severely indebted and poor African countries, he said that those countries would be exempted from those incurred Chinese loans that are to be matured by this year’s end.
