Average Geniuses

Average Geniuses

Competing with China in Africa: Why "Better" Beats "Bigger"

China's Belt and Road Initiative in Africa is genuinely impressive in scale. Over $50 billion in pledges from 2025 through 2027 alone.

Bala Selvam's avatar
Bala Selvam
Apr 10, 2026
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China's Playbook and Its Real Weaknesses

China's Belt and Road Initiative in Africa is genuinely impressive in scale. Over $50 billion in pledges from 2025 through 2027 alone. Railways, dams, ports, and telecom networks across dozens of countries were built at a pace Western institutions routinely failed to match. Chinese state banks move fast, ask few g…

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