China’s President Xi pledges stronger Africa ties in Senegal

Monday, 23 July 2018 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Senegal’s President Macky Sall and Chinese President Xi Jinping enter the stadium during the opening ceremony of the Arene Nationale du Senegal in Dakar, Senegal July 22, 2018 - REUTERS

Reuters: China’s President Xi Jinping pledged during a visit to Senegal on Saturday to strengthen economic ties with Africa, a continent already awash with cheap Chinese loans in exchange for minerals and huge construction projects.

Xi arrived in Senegal on Saturday for a two-day visit to sign bilateral deals, the first leg of an Africa tour that will also take him to Rwanda and South Africa, the latter for a summit of BRICS countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The visit was Xi’s first trip to West Africa as President, but his fourth to Africa, he told a joint press conference with Senegalese President Macky Sall after their third-ever meeting.

Africa is in the midst of a boom in infrastructure projects, managed and cheaply financed by China, part of Xi’s “Belt and Road” initiative to build a transport network connecting China by land and sea to Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa.

China has pledged $ 126 billion for the plan, which has been praised by its supporters as a source of vital financing for the developing world. In Senegal, Chinese loans have financed a highway linking the capital Dakar to Touba, its second main city, and part of an industrial park on the Dakar peninsula.