BEIJING - African leaders descend on China's capital this week, seeking funds for big-ticket infrastructure projects as they eye mounting great power competition over resources and influence on the continent.
China, the world's number two economy, is Africa's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade hitting $167.8-billion in the first half of this year, according to Chinese state media. Since the last China-Africa forum six years ago,"the world experienced a lot of changes, including Covid, geopolitical tension and now these economic challenges", Tang Xiaoyang of Beijing's Tsinghua University told AFP.
One controversial project in Kenya, a $5 billion railway - built with finance from Exim Bank of China - connects the capital Nairobi with the port city of Mombasa.