Integration propeller

SHI YU/CHINA DAILY The Belt and Road Initiative is a dynamic driver of Africa's development Last year marked the 10th anniversary of the launch of the Belt and Road Initiative. As the BRI has embraced Africa as partner and African Union's Agenda 2063 takes integration as the means for the African renaissance, there are some common elements between these two grand initiatives. Since you can't have an integrated continental market without an integrated continental infrastructure network, China's proposed but not imposed BRI offers itself as a solution that leads to Africa's political and economic integration. After supporting the liberation struggle in Africa, China, through such initiatives as the BRI is supporting Africa's economic liberation, proposing a win-win partnership to achieve shared development and common prosperity. In contrast, if you consider for instance the decision of the United States and the European Union to finance the reconstruction of the Lobito Atlantic Railway Corridor, which stretches across Angola to link the Katanga mining regions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Zambian province of Copperbelt, it is in order "to challenge China's dominance in key African trade corridor".That is clearly not paving the way toward shared development and common prosperity.