African
governments and firms with preference for small and medium scale enterprises
(SMEs), including Nigeria, will benefit from a $60 billion funding support from
The
People’s Republic of China.
A breakdown of
the $60 billion funding support is as follows: $5 billion for free aid and
interest-free loans; $35 billion of preferential loans and export credit on
more favourable terms; $5 billion of additional capital for the China Africa
Development Fund and special loan for the development of African SMEs each and
$10 billion (initial capital) of China-Africa Production Capacity Cooperation
Fund.
Another $40
billion pool fund is available for interested countries and firms in the
continent, through the Maritime/Silk
Road Fund.
According to Sun news report, the financial
support is through the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), which was
established in 2000.
Between
2016-2018, FOCAC will focus on agriculture and food security, with $60 billion
of funding support, according to Professor Zhang Yong-Peng of the Institute of
West Asia and African Studies, in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
(CASS).
Yong-Peng,
expert in international politics, also disclosed at a lecture for a delegation
of Nigerian journalists on the Belt and Road Initiative, in Beijing, China,
yesterday, that already, the country has established/built 25 Agricultural
Techonological Demonstration Centres (ATDC’s)
in Nigeria, South Africa,
Tanzania, Ethiopia, Ghana, Egypt and Rwanda.
With the
FOCAC, “Nigerian companies should come out and bid for the loans and made use
of it for development. A new railway, from Lagos to Ibadan is being built with
Chinese loan but the language barrier is an issue,” said Yong-Peng.
He also
explained how Nigeria, as a country and SMEs can benefit from the $40 billion
pool fund, under the Silk Road Fund.
“The pool is
not distributed by making a plan. You apply as a country, as a local government
or as a company, stating the amount of capital needed and back it up with a
business plan and how much is needed as well as the time frame for the project.
It will be evaluated, whether it is feasible or not. If approved, you get
financial support.
“But, some
African countries are not active by making use of these support capital. They
should make plans, as many as possible and grasp these opportunities.”
Chinese
President, Xi Jinping, had announced at the annual meeting of the World
Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland, that from May 14 to 15, China will host, in Beijing, the
Belt and Road Forum geared towards international cooperation.
“The
initiative aims to discuss ways to boost cooperation, build cooperation
platforms and share cooperation outcomes.”
The Belt and
Road Initiative covers more than 100 countries, with the cooperation
instruments including trade, investment and cultural exchanges.
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