- Chinese President Xi Jinping addressing the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Senegal committed an investment of $40 billion in African countries for the next three years.
- This indicates a 33.33 percent cut from the $60 billion commitment made by China to the continent in the last two FOCAC summits.
Chinese President Xi Jinping addressing the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Senegal committed an investment of $40 billion in African countries for the next three years. This indicates a 33.33 percent cut from the $60 billion commitment made by China to the continent in the last two FOCAC summits. The Asian economy has signalled a reduction in loans too.
During the last two decades, China became the largest financier for many African countries. The African countries as per reports received 42 percent of all Chinese official development assistance between 2000 and 2017. Lower funding to Africa, according to economists could be a sign that China is reconsidering its financial commitment due to the diminishing returns. Experts also feel that China may adopt a selective attitude in the case of big-ticket expenditure in Africa.
The proposed drop in cash flows in terms of credit lines, investment and trade finance is attributed to the rising indebtedness by African countries, aggravated by the economic fallout emerging from the pandemic.
