Belt and Road membership open to any country
Dec 08, 2017
“We call an initiative because it is open to anyone. It is not an international treaty,” Zhugiang told a gathering of students, experts and entrepreneurs at the dialogue at Protea Hotel in Kampala.
Uganda and other African countries are welcome to sign up to the Belt and Road Initiative, China's development blueprint, Ambassador Zheng Zhuqiang, China's envoy to Uganda said on Thursday.
The Belt and Road Initiative, a brainchild of China's President, Xi Jinping, seeks to promote connectivity and cooperation between China, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and parts of Africa.
Speaking at a public dialoge under the theme: ‘The Belt and Road Initiative: Prospects for China-Africa Cooperation,' Zhuqiang said Uganda would benefit from the initiative.
"We call an initiative because it is open to anyone. It is not an international treaty," Zhugiang told a gathering of students, experts and entrepreneurs at the dialogue at Protea Hotel in Kampala.
He stressed that the initiative was different from two US-led trade arrangements the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.
R-L, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to Uganda, Zheng Zhuqiang, Chief Executive Officer,Uganda Council on Foreign Relation, Rtd Francis Katana and Makerere University Lecturer, Prof. Apuuli Kasaija interacting during the public dialogue, the road and belt intiative for China-Africa Co-operation
Zhuqiang said the initiative was rather based on bridging countries' extensive convergent interests and the realization that a single country alone cannot solve the world's problems alone.
China is the world's second largest economy after the United States and is projected to ascend to top position in coming decades, and experts are keen to determine what ideals the country will promote.
The envoy touted the Belt and Road Initiative as China's wisdom to the world in light of profound challenges brought about by ravages of the 2008 financial crisis and a slow recovery.
The blueprint is intended to help boost international trade, enhance global growth and tame income inequalities manifested by the widening gap between the rich and the poor.
The initiative is an acronym of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road, an ancient trade link uncovered 2,000 years ago that grew popular largely due to thriving trade in silk.
The 'belt' includes countries situated on the original Silk Road through Central Asia, West Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.
The initiative calls for the integration of the region into a cohesive economic area through building infrastructure, increasing cultural exchanges, and broadening trade.
In December, 2015, China launched the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank with a capital of $100b to fund regional connectivity and industrial development projects under the programme.
China also injected US$40 billion in starting capital in the Silk Road Fund, which finances the Belt and Road Initiative through equity stakes.
As a result of the initiative, trade between China and other Belt and Road countries from 2014 to 2016 exceeded $3 trillion while China's investment in the partner countries surpassed $$50b.
The initiative has also generated some $1.1b of tax revenue and created 180,000 jobs, Ambassador Zhuqiang said of its early success.
Thursday's public dialogue was convened by the Uganda Council on Foreign Relations, a think tank set up to promote discussion and research on Uganda's foreign policy matters.
The chairperson of the council, Dr Martin Aliker encouraged more Ugandan students, scholars and entrepreneurs to join and support the council and share their views on policy issues.