Abstract
This paper examines China Belt Road Initiative (CBRI) and its implications on African development challenges. The method of analysis used is qualitative and historical, employing descriptive and analytical tools to arrive at the conclusion. The initiative, developed by the Chinese government in its relations with its allies, is generally popular in the developing world, especially in countries with infrastructural deficits, and a shortage of resources. The Chinese government emphasizes five areas of cooperation with Third World countries: coordinating development policies and forging infrastructure, strengthening investment and trade relations. Pertinent questions however are: To what extent will this initiative engender development among the participating countries in Africa? What are the contending issues and benefits arising from such an initiative? Using the dependency theoretical construct, the paper argues and also demonstrates that the current trend in CBRI is laden with Chinese strategic interest and collaboration as well as mutual cooperation among participating countries. In Africa, this initiative is seen as a bold attempt by African governments at connecting African countries with age-long Chinese economic interests. The paper concludes that the CBRI initiative is China‟s economic escalation strategy and development expansion opportunity programme that will drive business and investment fortunes for China.
Keywords: China, Belt, Road, Initiative, Africa Development
DOI: 10.36349/sokotojh.2022.v11i01.005
CHINA BELT ROAD INITIATIVE AND AFRICA’S DEVELOPMENT CRISIS
Ojo Oluwole Simeon
Department
of International Relations and Diplomacy,
Newgate
University Minna, Niger State
Nigeria.
ojooluwolesimeon@gmail.com +2348165458254,
&
Mfon Ekpootu
Department of History
and Diplomatic Studies,
University
of Port Harcourt.
mfon.ekpootu@uniport.edu.ng +2347035750440
Introduction
Road
development has always been critical to economic development from ancient times
to the present age. Its pivotal role
derives from the significance of road infrastructure in facilitating the transportation of people, goods and
services from one place to another. Arising from the foregoing, the importance of road transport systems
in the development of societies is adequately emphasized by scholars. For instance, Ojo and James-Iduma have argued
that;
The significance of transport system to human development cannot be over- emphasized.
Transport system is very essential to the functioning of any society whether
primitive or advanced…it is a truism that transportation system has inevitably influenced human civilization and societal development…1
1
O.S. Ojo and I.O. James-Iduma, ―A History of Road Transport
System in
Minna, 1900-1960.‖ Anyigba Journal of History
and International Studies, Vol.2, No.1, (2021), 186.
Against the
backdrop of the significance of road networks, the governments of developed and underdeveloped nations as well as the international
community has shown interest in developing road
infrastructure critical in the advancement of the society. This is exemplified
in the construction of both local, national and trans-border road networks across the globe.
In Africa, in
the quest to connect new territories through physical human movements
precipitated by the instinct
of engendering development, the volume of road construction (both locally and internationally)
has drastically increased. During the early period of human civilization,
African societies constructed roads
to link new communities and settlements facilitating trade contacts and other forms of inter-group relations.
African road networks in the pre-colonial period served as avenues through which local trade and
later international trade through the Sahara was conducted. During the era of colonial rule, national
governments of colonized African territories embarked on aggressive construction of roads to link areas of economic
interest across Africa. Although these colonial
road networks have been criticized by pundits as infrastructures of
exploitation,2 they have nonetheless
contributed to the development of respective African countries. In the
contemporary period, the growing nature of the interconnectedness of sovereign states of the world has encouraged
the construction of national and trans-border roads hence, the China Belt Road
Initiative (CBRI).
Against the
backdrop of the foregoing, this paper interrogates the impact of CBRI on
African infrastructural development.
The rationale for this study is lack of knowledge on the implication of CBRI on the development of participating
countries especially African countries. The objective of the study is to appraise the implications of CBRI on the African
development crisis. In order to achieve
this objective, the paper is structured into five sections. Section one which
is introduction underpins the
rationale for the study. Section two clears some conceptual cobwebs arising
from the analysis in the paper and
adopts a workable theory that serves as frame of analysis. Section three reviews the origin of China Belt Road
Initiative which section four interrogates the implications of CBRI on Africa‘s
development. Section five
concludes the discussion.
Conceptual and Theoretical Framework
The concept
used in this paper that deserves critical analysis in order to provide an essential backdrop for understanding the issue under scrutiny is the
concept of development which is as civilization.
Its extensive use in western societies from Greco-Roman civilizations to the
late 19th century as a
generic construct that designates the most varied aspects related to humanity‘s
well- being.3 As such, the concept suffers with a lot of
conceptual explanations and debate that an acceptance
of any is a matter of deliberate choice of a scholar to suit a line of
argument. Hence, development is conceptualized in this paper to mean progressive change in infrastructural development, health facilities, and other social amenities that make
life more meaningful to citizens of a
given nation for a number of years. This conceptualization brings to the fore,
the issue of sustainability in the development index. Sustainable development is defined here as a transformation process
in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the
2
O.N. Njoku, Economic History
of Nigeria, 19th and 20th Centuries (Nsukka: Magnet Business Ventures,
2001), 20
3
J. Soares,
Jr. and R.H. Quintella, ―Development: An Analysis of Concepts,
Measurement
and Indicators.‖ Brazilian Administrative Review, Vol.5, No.2, (2008), 105.
orientation of
technological development and institutional change are reconciled and
reinforces the present and future potentials, in order to attend to the needs and future
aspirations.4
Although there
are a lot of theories that have been advanced in explaining the development of countries, this paper is anchored on the
dependency theoretical construct. The theory emerged in 1950s from the research of economic commission of Latin America
and the Caribbean ECLAC.5 One
of the leading apostles of the dependency paradigm, Raul Presbich, proposed
that in order to create conditions of
development within a country, it is imperative to control the monetary exchange rate with the government placing
emphasis on fiscal rather than monetary policy; to promote a more effective governmental role in terms of
national development; to create enabling environment for investment, giving a preferential role to national
capitals; to allow the entrance
of capital in accordance
to planned national plans for development; and to develop import substitution
protection of internal production through quotas and tariffs
for import, among others.6
The dependency
theory in its intent and purpose de-emphasized the dependence of developing economies on developed nations. The theory
encouraged the development of viable structures that could sustain and improve economies of developing nations rather
than depending on externally induced
development. The theory articulates that the condition of underdevelopment is
precisely the result of the
integration of Third World Countries into Western capitalist construct
dominated by metropolitan nations
of the northern hemisphere.7 They argue that underdevelopment in Third World countries can be linked to the
expansion of the world capitalist system.8 It is from this perspective that this paper analyzes and
sees Chinese Belt Road Initiative as an externally induced development that will undermine
development in the continent or, at best, compound Africa‘s development challenges.
Overview of China Belt Road Initiative
The origin of the China Belt Road Initiative (BRI) can be traced to the visit of the Chinese president, Xi
Jinping, to Kazakhstan
in
2013
where
he
announced a proposal
for
a
―Silk
Road
Economic Belt.‖ In South East Asia later that year, Xi proposed a ―21-Century
Maritime Silk Road.‖ The idea harks
back to the fact that for more than a millennium the Silk Road served as the world‘s first ―trade super high-way.‖ The initiative emphasizes five areas of cooperation with Third World countries: (1) Coordinating
development policies; (2) forging infrastructure and facilities networks;
(3) strengthening investment and trade relations;
(4) enhancing financial
cooperation; and
(5) deepening
social and cultural exchanges.9 This initiative is to cover
underdeveloped countries of South
East Asia, Latin America, and Africa. While part of the Chinese effort on BRI
is aimed at these specific
corridors, in fact, the program
is global and not directed
at any specific geography.
![]() |
4
Soares, Jr. and Quintella, ―Development,‖ 110.
5
A.U. Atiku ―Tracing the
History and Application of some
Theories in Historical Writings.‖ VUNA Journal
of History and International Relations, Vol.2, No.1. (2014),
343.
6
Atiku, ―Tracing the History and Application of some Theories,‖ 344.
7
I.E.J. Emeh, ―Dependency Theory and Africa‘s Underdevelopment: A Paradigm Shift
from
Pseudo-Intellectualism.
The Nigerian Perspective.‖ International Journal of African and Asian
Studies, Vol.1. (2013), 116.
8
M. Agbebi and P. Virtanen, ―Dependency Theory: A Conceptual Lens to
Understand China‘s Presence in Africa?‖
Development Studies, Vol.44, No.3 (2017), 429
9
L.A. Johnston, ―Africa, and China‘s One
Belt, One Road
Initiative: Why now and
what next?‖ International Centre
for Trade and Sustainable Development, Vol.5, No.7, (2019), 4.
Latin America
is deeply involved, as are all parts of Africa. The main objective is for China
to lend money to developing countries
to construct infrastructure in transport, power, water supply, and other sectors.10
China‘s second
BRI meeting in Beijing in April 2019 hosted 37 states and over 5,000 delegation members;
whereas 125 states along-with over 40 global organizations have already associated themselves with Initiative.11
Reflected numbers, on one side, indicate the recognition of aspiration amongst emergent states to imitate the
China‘s economic model and perception that it could offer a valuable course towards international
trade and industry development, with peace, prosperity, and security within developing states.12
The ‗Belt and Road‘ initiative is an ambitious venture that foresee connecting the whole Euro-Asia,
along-with peripheral South, South-East, and West Asian regions, European, Latin-American and the African regions.13
Ever since 2013, mass media has envisaged
varying BRI maps along with unreliable signals of African state‘s membership in
the initiatives, though majority of
the maps represent the course from Indian-Ocean to African states namely Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, Djibouti, Egypt and Eritrea unless joins
the Mediterranean.14
Implications of CBRI on Africa’s
Development
China‘s Belt
and Road Initiative (CBRI), as it appeared and endorsed is an economic
escalation approach and growth
expansion prospects. However besides various opportunities, it equally offers numerous
challenges, demanding way forward. Fore mostly, akin to any other transnational inventiveness, the CBRI will entail intelligent diplomatic
strategies to deal with beneficial bilateral
relationships, and carefully executed policies to expand efficiently.
However, many African states are facing regular political
instability and uncertainty that would significantly manipulate the panning parameters, policies,
implementations, and outcomes yields from the initiative. As a matter of fact, Africa‘s
political instability and diplomatic governances issues, including corrupt
and ineffective measures
to implement restructuring and development expansions. Another major challenge causing socio-political and
socio-economic pressures is the potential
threats of insecurity that carry
scores of uncertainties to the initiative.15
CBRI
investment projects are estimated to add over USD 1 trillion of outward funding
for foreign infrastructure over the
10-year period from 2017.16 While new vehicles such as the Silk Road
Fund, have been formed to help with the financing, most of the Chinese funding for these projects come
![]() |
10
Johnston, ―Africa, and China‘s One Belt,
One Road
Initiative,‖ 3.
11
N. Rahim, A.M. Khan, M. Alam, R. Ali and A. Ali ―China‘s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI):
Mapping Economic Escalation and Development Expansion
Opportunities for Africa.‖ Ilkogretim
Online - Elementary Education Online, Vol.19, Iss.3, (2020), 2814
12
Rahim et al., ―China‘s
Belt and Road Initiative,‖ 2814.
13
Rahim et al, Ibid, 2814.
14
Rahim, et al, Ibid,
2841.
15
N. Rahim,
A.M. Khan, M. Alam, R. Ali and A. Ali, ―China‘s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI):
Mapping
Economic Escalation and Development Expansion Opportunities for
Africa.‖ Ilkogretim Online. Elementary
Education Online, Vol.19, Iss.3 (2020), 2815 – 2816.
16
This figure is the most
often quoted from an adding
up of projects already invested and
foreshadowed for the next 10 years, using their
own staff and expert consultants. For elaborate details
visit www.pwc.com/gx/en/growth-markets-center/assets/pdf/china-new-silk-route.pdf.
from
state-directed development and commercial banks.17 Because the Belt
and Road is a Chinese initiative, it
is important to evaluate its implication on Africa‘s development. It is
important to bear in mind that any
development policy developed from the outside of any given country as can be discerned from the theoretical exposition
in this paper may not be sustainable. Given Africa‘s experience in the past, it is imperative that the CBR should be
viewed in the context of its negative implication on engendering
sustainable development in Africa.
One of the
implications of CBRI on Africa‘s development is considered on the backdrop of
the influx of Chinese products in
Africa thereby inhibiting local manufactures. With the benefit of this road network on the sideline of China, it
will be easy for the giant of Asia to dominate Africa‘s market in a short possible time. It should be borne in mind that
the Chinese economy and general social
ideology emanating from this initiative with Africa will encourage the influx
of more Chinese products such as Chinese
drinks, foods, dresses,
implements, movies, artworks,
entertainment, etiquette and
the taste that will gradually replace indigenous choices and equivalents. For
example, Chinese finished products
will replace indigenous types. This will discourage indigenous efforts in developing modern technologies of
production because Chinese products are readily available for consumption. This will further create
trade imbalance between Africa and China with more benefit on the Chinese side as is currently the case.
Presently, record have it that
… China is
Africa‘s largest country trade partner - accounting for 16.3% of Africa‘s total trade in 2015 and 11.9% in
2016… China‘s foreign trade balance is positive.
According to the statistics by China Customs, in 2017, the value of Chinese-African trade amounted to US$170 billion,
and China‘s exports
to Africa reached US$94.74
billion; China‘s imports from Africa reached US$75.26 billion…The structure of trade is not advantageous for Africa…18
China‘s infrastructural
interest in Africa can simply be a result of her trade interest with African nations. It should be reemphasized that
trade, most especially external trade, around which wealth revolved, determined the interest of a
state more than any other factor in international relations.19 The point to emphasize is that in the end, Africa will continue to remain a dependent economy
which is detrimental to balancing Africa‘s share in the global economy.
In other words, Africa‘s contribution to the world economy through trade will recede more drastically.
Furthermore,
it should be stressed that Africa‘s infrastructural needs far exceed the
current and planned investments under
the CBRI. Addressing these needs will therefore remain an essential priority of development agenda of
participating African countries. In particular, regions not lying within the current CBRI corridors will
also require increased investment in infrastructure to support economic development and avoid the
widening of geographical divides. There is some risk that investment in other critical sectors, such
as water and sanitation, could be under-addressed in these countries. It is also critical that investments in low-carbon, sustainable and high-quality infrastructure will be given
adequate support elsewhere than Africa. In broad stroke,
the initiative
![]() |
17
OECD "The Belt and Road Initiative in the global trade, investment and finance landscape." OECD
Business and Finance
Outlook 2018, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/bus_fin_out-2018-6-en
18
F. Kaczmarek ―African Dimension of the Belt
and
Road Initiative.‖ Przegląd Strategiczny, Iss.12, (2019), 150 – 151.
19
B.M. Atime and K.T. Akange ―International Relations in
Pre-Colonial Africa South
of the Sahara.‖ VUNA
Journal
of History and International
Relations, Vol.6, No.2, (2022),
108.
will simply shift excess capacity and less environmentally-friendly energy sources to African countries with little net gain. Again,
the maintenance, rehabilitation, and upgrading of existing infrastructure, since Africa suffers total
infrastructural deficit, in order to benefit from the initiative will be
tasking.
Again, the
CBRI initiative should be viewed by African governments with suspicion given
the country‘s experience during colonial
days. During the period of colonialism, colonial
powers developed certain road
infrastructures to link up with their areas of strategic economic interest.
This was not done in order to bring development to the colonized
territories but to facilitate the exploitation
of Africa‘s rich resources for onward exportation to Europe. This explains why
pundits like Njoku and several
other African economic
historians were quick to dismiss
it as the infrastructures of
exploitation.20 The export
drive associated with colonialism did not arise by accident. Rather, it was preceded by deliberate efforts of
developing this road infrastructure in order
to exploit resources demanded by the developing European industries. In
the case of China, it could be that
the initiative is a deliberate effort to dominate Africa‘s market with Chinese
products as well as to facilitate
the exploitation Africa‘s resources as the project is to cut across only few
areas with Chinese strategic interest.
More
elaborately, it should be recalled that historians, political scientists,
cultural anthropologists and the
commentators on African relations with the West have often written about how
Europe underdeveloped Africa.21
While these allegations are cogent, given Africa‘s unsavory history of slave trade, colonialism, and
neo-colonialism. Indeed, the growing influence the Chinese initiative might have on African countries may raise
a specter and if not addressed urgently, might lead future scholars to grumble again on how China
underdeveloped Africa. The current trend in Sino-Africa relations generally and through the CBRI, to be candid, is laden
with Chinese strategic interest,22
rather than genuine
development as was the case with Europe during the era of
colonialism.
Finally, the
share of African workers in Chinese infrastructure projects through the CBRI
scheme on the continent will be low. This is because during the
implementation of the scheme, Chinese multinational companies
will dominate the construction project
thereby making African
mere onlookers than
participators. This is given that African countries lack indigenous companies
and expertise in construction like
their Chinese counterparts. Indeed, the fact that Chinese companies will be importing laborers from China has
made the whole project, like the China‘s unconditional aid, to be seen as the ―devil‘s gifts‖ – giving in one hand and
taking it back on the other, as Osondu puts it.23 More worrisome is the
fact that this project if successfully carried out may result to Africa‘s partial loss of political sovereignty since the rail network is to be controlled by China due to the fact she holds the economic war-chest of the project.
It should be reiterated that like the
![]() |
20
Professor O.N. Njoku is Nigeria‘s economic historian. This argument
is captured in his pioneer
book on Nigeria‘s economic
history in the 19th and 20th centuries. For elaborate details consult O.N.
Njoku Economic History of Nigeria
in the 19th and 20th Centuries (Enugu: Magnet Business Enterprises, 2001).
21
See for instance
W. Rodney How Europe underdeveloped Africa (Abuja: Panaf Publishing Inc, 2005).
22
S.O. Udeala ―Nigeria-China Economic Relations under
the
South-South Cooperation.‖ African
Journal
of International Affairs, Vol.13, No.1&2, (2010), 78.
23
A. Osondu
,―China‘s Unconditional Aid: For or Against Nigeria‘s Development.‖ VUNA
Journal of History and International Relations, Vol.1, No.1, (2013),
335.
assertion of Nkrumah as cited by Odeh inferred,
in any bilateral or multilateral relations, a country
that holds economic power controls the political power.24
Conclusion
From the analysis in this paper, it is pertinent to stress that Africa is facing the crisis of underdevelopment
that is even more profound in the area of infrastructure development. Indeed,
the continent has remained largely
underdeveloped despite the presence of huge mineral and human resources. More worrisome is the fact that several
decades after the end of colonialism, most parts of Africa is still fighting with
problems such as high poverty rate, lack of basic infrastructural facilities in all sectors of the economy,
unemployment, high mortality rate, political instability and insecurity of lives and property.25
Against the background of Africa‘s development crisis, it is pertinent that policies and programmes
aimed at bringing development to the continent are carefully scrutinized hence this study. It is
imperative that African policymakers should be meticulous in scrutinizing policies and programmes that
are perceived to support development. From the analysis in this paper, it suffice to say that the CBRI initiative is a
policy that is not meant to develop participating
countries per se but to facilitate China‘s global expansion. The paper sees the
initiative as China‘s economic
escalation strategy and development expansion opportunity programme that will drive business and investment fortunes for China.
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