The Future of Chinese-Financed Infrastructure in Kenya

The China Road and Bridge Corporation is building a massive new half-a-billion dollar expressway right through the Kenyan capital of Nairobi. But this project is very different than previous Chinese-financed infrastructure initiatives in Kenya, like the ailing Standard Gauge Railway for example, where the government borrowed billions from the China Exim Bank. Instead, the new Nairobi Expressway is a public-private-partnership (PPP) where CRBC is putting up the money and in turn, will receive a long-term concession to recoup its investment before handing the road back to the Kenyan government. It's easy to see why a lot of people like this model given that the host country doesn't incur any debt and the contractor has a chance to earn a sizable return on its investment. But in Kenya, as in many countries, PPPs are complicated and very risky. Nairobi-based journalist Ismail Einashe is closely following the development of the new Nairobi Expressway and shared some of his reflections of the project in a "Letter From Africa" that was recently published on BBC News. Ismail joins Eric & Cobus from Nairobi to discuss why this particular road could tell us a lot about the future of infrastructure financing in Africa. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @eolander | @stadenesque | @IsmailEinashe SUBSCRIBE TO THE CAP'S DAILY EMAIL NEWSLETTER Your subscription supports independent journalism. Subscribers get the following: 1. A daily email newsletter of the top China-Africa news. 2. Access to the China-Africa Experts Network 3. Unlimited access to the CAP's exclusive analysis content on chinaafricaproject.com Subscriptions start at just $7 a month. Use the promo code "Podcast" and get a 30% lifetime discount on your subscription: www.chinaafricaproject.com/subscribe See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.