African Outlook 2021: Reflection On 2020 And Looks Ahead
By ‘Seye Akanmu-Bode President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya. African nations have mostly escaped the heavy death toll and hospital bed shortages faced by Western countries, but the COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a disproportionately severe blow to the continent’s economic ambitions. Fortunately, a robust collaboration between African public and private sectors, and particularly innovative financing measures […]
Bilateralism And Regionalism: FTA, AfCFTA , And AGOA Under President Biden
By: Seye Akanmu-bode AGOA, named for the African Growth and Opportunity Act passed in 2000 and extended to 2025 covers the Africa-US trade relationship. AGOA abolished import duties on more than 1,800 products manufactured in eligible countries sub-Saharan Africa (those with established or making continuous progress with the market-based economy, rule of law and pluralism, […]
A Gaze Into The China Silk Belt And Road Initiative
How It Started The Silk Road refers to the terrestrial and maritime routes that connect the East and the West. Precisely, it connects East Asia and Southern Asia with East Africa, West Africa, West Asia, and Southern Europe. The name silk is due to Asian silk which is the main traded good, thus influenced the […]
Who Funds BRI?
The funding for this plan can be seen from four perspectives; direct funding from China; indirect funding from China; funding from international bodies and funding from member countries. China is providing funding for this initiative directly through: US$40 billion Silk Road fund; New Development Bank; Industrial and Commercial bank of China (ICBC); China development Bank; […]
Big Deal For China
The BRI is not just aimed at solving current economic and trade challenges but also it goes to secure the future for China. It is imperative to state that a number of arguments and counterarguments have been made on the critical factors that motivated China to engage in such a massive plan. We can broadly […]
BRI Gains For Africa As Senegal And Rwanda Subscribes To BRI
During his Africa visit in July 2018, President Xi Jinping also signed an agreement on BRI with Senegal and Rwanda. Senegal became the first country on Africa’s west coast to sign an official cooperation document on the BRI. The BRI in Africa has focused more on Eastern African countries because of the linkage with the […]
Fears Limits BRI Progress In Asia
Five years after the launch of the BRI, the rising debt profile of countries in Central and South Asia due to cheap Chinese loans (compared to stringent loans from financial institutions like World Bank and the IMF) have propelled concern on the benefit of the BRI. This due to the fact that China’s approach to […]
Europe Skepticism And Response To BRI
Europe is a critical destination for the BRI, however, in the course of the spring of 2018, the EU ambassadors to China presented a report in which they argued that BRI is not sustainable economically, environmentally, socially, and financially. Similarly, China’s activity of acquiring ports in Belgium, the Netherland, Spain, Italy, and Greece has raised […]
FOCAC 2018 Summit: China Denies Interference, Pledges Support For Africa
The 2018 FOCAC summit which was held in Beijing was an opportunity for China to reinstate it commitment to the growth and development of Africa. President Xi Jinping opened the summit by reinstating the non-interference of China in the governance of Africa by emphasizing a “five no” approach to China’s African policy, namely: no interference […]
Nigeria Signs Mou To Tap Into BRI As China Investment Reach US$ 27 Billion
The 2018 FOCAC for Nigeria to enhance its bilateral relationship with China, especially given the master plan of China to integrate global trade. According to the Chinese Consul General in Nigeria. Ambassador Chao Xiaoliang expressed that both countries tend to broaden relations in the area of finance, trade, infrastructure, and people-to-people ties. Also, he hinted […]