Foreign news
Nairobi tollway an example of China’s new belt and road financing approach in Africa
The expressway opening in Kenya’s capital is part of a shift by China’s Belt and Road Initiative away from debt financing towards public-private partnerships
Chinese lenders have become more cautious in financing infrastructure projects on the continent, concerned about borrowers’ ability to repay loans
The Nairobi expressway was commissioned to the public on a trial basis on Saturday, and motorists will be allowed to use it for the next three weeks before its official launch.
So far 11,000 vehicles have registered to use the road. Kenyans have expressed their joy over the reduced traffic time they’ll spend when using the 27 kilometre highway.
As a Chinese-built and financed tollway opens in Kenyan capital Nairobi, its most remarkable feature may be that it is an example of Beijing’s attempt to retool the financing behind its Belt and Road Initiative in Africa.
The China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) built the 27.1km (16.8 miles) Nairobi Expressway linking the country’s main airport and the capital. The US$668 million projectwas financed by the state-owned China Communications Construction Company, CRBC’s parent company.
A CRBC subsidiary, Moja Expressway, will operate the road for 27 years to recoup the investment through toll fees.
In all, the road marks a gradual shift in the belt and road strategy, from public debt finance to a new method of funding for infrastructure like roads and power plants in Africa: public-private partnerships (PPP).
Under the PPP model, Chinese private companies can lower the risks to repayment and help African governments reduce their loans and budget deficits, observers say.
Foreign news
EU Cautiously optimistic on Syria engagement – Official
Irish foreign minister Simon Harris said on Monday that the European Union (EU) “is cautiously optimistic on Syria engagement” but called for more deeper engagement to strengthen relations with the country.
Harris said this at a news conference held at the EU Headquarters in Brussels, the Belgian capital.
“It’s early days, but I think there are signs of optimism. But it is important that we continue to engage.
“I don’t think it would be a good scenario if any other geopolitical actors and forces engage with Syria and for the European Union not to be in a position to intensively engage with them,“ he said.
In her remarks, Ms. Kaja Kallas, the Vice-President of the EU described Syria’s future as fragile but said that the bloc needed to take the right steps.
“But of course, we need to see the right steps as well. Right now, they’re saying all the right words, and they are doing also the right things.
“Therefore, we have this set step-for-step approach, and if they take the steps, then we are willing to take the steps as well,’’ she said.
On the war in Gaza, Harris said President Donald Trump and his team are very much a party to the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas after the intensive work that was put in.
He conceded that the Trump administration put in a lot of effort to arrive at a ceasefire agreement in the days before his assumption of office for a return to the White House.
“I think that was important and there is no doubt that the intensive work invested by the Trump administration played a very significant role in helping to bring about a ceasefire – a ceasefire that has now seen a cessation of hostilities, the killing, and the bombings.
“Also, that has seen the flow and has seen hostages being released. It’s really important that the ceasefire is in place.
“It is also important, though, to acknowledge in that ceasefire agreement itself, it does talk about people being able to return, and therefore, I think it’s important that we’re consistent in the approach that we take.
“The priority, I think, needs to be on implementing to the letter, the ceasefire agreement.”
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