DAKAR
\nThe European Union (EU) plans to invest \u20ac150 billion ($171 billion) in the development of Africa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced at a news conference in Senegal\u2019s capital Dakar.
\nThe announcement came ahead of the upcoming summit between the EU and the African Union next week. \u201cAt the summit, investments will be at the heart of the discussions because they are the means of our shared ambition. In this area Europe is the most reliable partner for Africa and by far the most important,\u201d von der Leyen said.
\nThe proposal is the first regional plan under the European Union\u2019s \u20ac300 billion ($340 billion) Global Gateway investment scheme, which aims to develop public and private infrastructure around the globe between now and 2027. The funding will reportedly come from private sector investments, as well as a number of EU financing bodies and member states. However, no further information on how exactly the money will be raised or spent has been unveiled so far.
\nThe EU scheme is viewed as a response to China\u2019s Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure programme launched back in 2013. Over the past decade, China has invested billions into the construction of roads, railways, and ports worldwide in order to set up new trade links and diplomatic ties. As of December 2021, 145 countries had signed up to China\u2019s initiative, mostly in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. According to the Refinitiv BRI database, the BRI currently covers 2,631 projects with a combined value of $3.7 trillion.
\nThe EU has criticised Beijing\u2019s plan for allegedly leaving signatory countries with huge debts. Meanwhile, von der Leyen recently called EU\u2019s own global infrastructure plan a \u201ctrue alternative\u201d to China\u2019s, with a goal to \u201ccreate strong and sustainable links, not dependencies, between Europe and the world.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DAKAR The European Union (EU) plans to invest \u20ac150 billion ($171 billion) in the development of Africa, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced at a news conference in Senegal\u2019s capital Dakar. The announcement came ahead of the upcoming summit between the EU and the African Union next week. \u201cAt the summit, investments […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-243966","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n