Zambia debt crisis

African media buzzed with reports this week that China plans to take over Zambia’s national power company, ZESCO, and has already taken control of national broadcaster ZNBC. In essence, Beijing is repossessing chunks of the Zambian state because it cannot repay the gigantic loans it took out from China.The takeovers were described in a report by Africa Confidential, which warned Zambians would be alarmed to discover just how far their country has gone into debt with China: Zambia is a good example of what the International Monetary Fund and the United States Senate are calling a crisis of accelerating developing-country indebtedness to China … A major worry of the IMF and U.S. is that China’s BRI strategy is first to encourage indebtedness, and then to take over strategic national assets when debtors default on repayments. The state electricity company Zesco is already in talks about a takeover by a Chinese company, AC has learned. The state-owned TV and radio news … [Read more...] about Report: China Plans to Take Over Zambia’s Electric Company After Loan Default

LUSAKA (Reuters) – Zambia should show that it is taking measures to fight corruption to unlock donor aid and investments that have been withheld due to graft concerns, the British High Commissioner to the country said on Tuesday. Britain, Finland, Ireland and Sweden withheld nearly $34 million in aid to Zambia’s social welfare and education sectors in September last year because of concern over financial mismanagement. A former cabinet minister is facing charges over the mismanaged funds, and the case is a test on how President Edgar Lungu is addressing corruption in a government that is struggling with slow economic growth and high debt. British High Commissioner to Zambia Fergus Cochrane-Dyet, whose term finishes at the end of August, told reporters that Britain was concerned about the persistent corruption reports in the southern African nation. “As I depart with a sense of unease about the direction this country is taking, let me be frank about the UK’s … [Read more...] about Britain urges Zambia to fight corruption to unlock aid

This morning’s key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com Kenya’s leaked BRI contract reveals shocking China debt trap details Leaked clauses in Kenya-China BRI contract Uganda’s auditor warns that Uganda may be in similar China debt trap as Kenya India pledges $1.4 billion to Maldives to help with China debt trap Kenya’s leaked BRI contract reveals shocking China debt trap details China has signed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) contracts with dozens of countries with the requirement that the details be kept secret, even from the countries’ ministers or central banks. It has always been clear that the reason why China demanded total secrecy was that these contracts are extremely favorable to China and are used for “debt trap diplomacy,” allowing China to take control of a country’s infrastructure when it is unable to make the loan payments. The poster child for debt trap diplomacy is China’s seizure of control of the Port of … [Read more...] about World View: Kenya’s Leaked BRI Contract Reveals Shocking China Debt Trap Details

Libya On October 17th, members of the United Nations (U.N.) Security Council urged all Libyan parties to endorse and sign the recently finalized political agreement for the creation of a Government of National Accord. The Security Council reiterated the agreement offers a real prospect for resolving Libya’s political, security, and institutional challenges. It also noted the Libya Sanctions Committee is prepared to designate those who threaten Libya’s peace, stability, and security or who undermine the successful completion of its political transition. On October 19th, the Foreign Ministers of Algeria, France, Germany, Morocco, Qatar, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the United Kingdom (U.S) and the United States (U.S.), as well as the European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs, called on all parties to the Libyan Political Dialogue to immediately approve the political agreement brokered by U.N. Special Representative for Libya … [Read more...] about Africa Update OCTOBER 22, 2015