Beijing and Nairobi agreed to resume construction of a stalled railway project that had become a symbol of the dangers of overreliance on Chinese financing.
Construction of the $5.5 billion Kenya Standard Gauge Railway — which Kenya’s president called the country’s “most consequential” project — was halted in 2020 after experts questioned its commercial viability.
Critics had pointed to it as an example of the apparent risks of relying on Chinese financing to build out infrastructure projects, though the extent of this being an issue is hotly debated among experts. Under the new agreement, Nairobi’s debt will be converted to yuan, and the final payment will be delayed until 2040, the South China Morning Post reported.
