A decade on, China's Belt and Road Initiative's octopus-like tentacles have extended worldwide
 Since its introduction in 2013, China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been seen as a landmark development policy. It has been described as the largest infrastructure and investment programme in history, encompassing more than 60 countries and over 60 per cent of the world’s population.
The overarching goal of the initiative is to enhance economic cooperation between China and the countries along the path of the ancient Silk Road. While the BRI offers promising and unprecedented opportunities for economic growth and development, it has also been met with criticism from several quarters, primarily regarding China’s rise as a dominant global power.
Belt and Road has several components, including transport, energy, and telecommunications infrastructure, as well as trade, investment, and cultural exchange. The BRI’s central vision is to create a network of infrastructure that connects Asia, Europe and Africa, thus enhancing economic cooperation and growth. According to estimates, around US$4 trillion will be invested in the initiative by 2049. It has already yielded several successes, with the creation of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the development of the Mombasa-Nairobi railway line in Kenya, and the construction of a port in Haifa, Israel, to name a few. In 2021, even the small island of Dominica has joined, becoming the latest to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chinese government pledging to cooperate on various economic projects, including infrastructure, tourism and agriculture.
One of the most striking successes of BRI is the development of CPEC is a component of the BRI that aims to connect the deep-water Pakistani port of Gwadar to China's northwestern Xinjiang region, through a 3,000-kilometre network of highways, railways, and pipelines. The CPEC is seen as a crucial part of the larger initiative, as it offers China a shorter and more feasible route to the Middle East, Europe and Africa, bypassing the vulnerability of the Malacca Strait.
The CPEC has already started yielding dividends, with the construction of the Gwadar port, a railway line connecting the port with the important city of Lahore, and an energy pipeline linking the cities of Gwadar and Kashgar in northwest China. The impact of CPEC on Pakistan’s economy has been pronounced, with the country’s GDP experiencing steady growth and infrastructure projects like dams, highways and airports under construction.
In Kenya, the BRI has seen the construction of the Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway, which has enhanced the country's connectivity and spurred economic growth. The railway line has acted as a catalyst for other developments in Kenya; for example, several manufacturing plants have sprung up along the railway line, benefiting from cheaper and more efficient transportation of goods. Moreover, the railway line has increased employment opportunities, attracted foreign investment and sped up the movement of tourism along the coast.
The BRI has also had a significant influence on the global energy market. China has been heavily investing in renewable energy through the BRI, with massive wind and solar power projects in many countries. The initiative is popular with the powerful climate change lobby by promoting the carbon craze and transition to costly renewable energy, which has facilitated the banning of less expensive fossil fuels.
Popular as it is in some areas, BRI has also been criticised for opaque lending practices and a lack of transparency. The initiative has been accused of promoting unsustainable debt burdens and creating dependency on China.
For example, the Hambantota port in Sri Lanka, which was built with Chinese funding, became a significant concern as Sri Lanka's debt to China soared, leading to the port being transferred to Chinese control as debt repayment. Similarly, a port project in Malaysia was canceled due to fears of China's influence and sustainability concerns. The BRI has also been criticised for an apparent absence of oversight and accountability, making it difficult for countries to negotiate terms that are favorable to their interests.
Moreover, the BRI has also been accused of promoting authoritarianism and human rights abuses by the Chinese regime. A prominent example of this is the situation in Xinjiang, where Chinese authorities have been accused of mass detentions, forced labour, and cultural oppression. The BRI's development of oil pipelines and roads through the region has been seen as legitimising these abuses.
Another issue that needs to be considered is the potential impact of BRI on the global balance of power. Critics argue that the initiative is an example of China’s bid to become the dominant global power, with a field of influence extending to the rest of the world. China's significant investment in many countries across the globe has led to concerns of a “debt-trap”, with the initiative being seen as a soft power play by China.
The initiative has also drawn criticism from the United States, which has accused China of using the BRI to spread its authoritarian model of governance and lack of transparency. The US has countered BRI through its “Indo-Pacific” strategy, which aims to promote alternative investments and partnerships in the Asia-Pacific region.
With geopolitical tensions between the West and China on the rise, China's master plan may well come unstuck, or at least fail fix the world's infrastructure in the comprehensive may first envisaged.
Nonetheless, its enduring value may be found in its incidental work done along the way in serving its more ambitious goals. The 359-mile Mombasa–Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), for instance, connects the large Indian Ocean Port of Mombasa with the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.
The SGR replaced the "Lunatic Express" a railway built in 1896 after many trials and tribulations. Work was plagued by drought, diseases and desertions. Some 130 miles out of Mombasa, the camp was terrorised by a pair of man-eating lions that slaughtered 28 workers before being hunted down and killed.
Less dramatically elsewhere in the world, BRI has put in a bridge here to cross a torrential river which separated two communities on either side, or bored a tunnel through a mountain that linked two towns for they could not only trade with each other, but trade with the outside world.
Perhaps Belt and Road may not realise its macro ambitions, but the smaller projects it has undertaken over the last 10 years will have lasting value and be greatly appreciated by generations to come. |
