China has poured 30 billion yuan into Kenya to help build the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, a major infrastructure, and after six years, Kenya has not been able to repay the money, and even put forward the idea of defaulting for another 50 years.
Looking back on history, in May 2017, Kenya ushered in the completion of the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, the first railway since independence. The 480-kilometre-long railway, which connects the capital Nairobi with Mombasa, an important port in East Africa, is not only a great leap forward in Kenya's transportation network, but also a symbol of friendship and cooperation between China and Kenya. Its construction standards, technology and equipment are all from China, reflecting China's outstanding strength in the field of modern railway construction.
At the beginning, Kenya wanted to build such a railway with the vision of developing the country and improving people's livelihood, and they turned to China, which is known for its infrastructure strength, to seek cooperation and support. As a friendly country that has always upheld the grace of a drop of water and reciprocated by a spring, China is naturally obliged to extend a helping hand.
For the construction of this railway, the Chinese side can be said to have done its utmost to build it. Before the start of the construction of the railway, the Chinese side sent a professional investigation team to every inch of Kenya to conduct detailed survey and planning to ensure the smooth progress of the railway construction, for which Kenya is grateful, but the investment of 30 billion yuan is indeed a huge burden for them. Kenya could not afford the cost on its own, so they asked China for an advance.
After in-depth communication and consultation between the two sides, China decided to bear 90% of the railway construction cost in the form of a loan. This decision reflects China's sincerity and responsibility, but it also clarifies the conditions for repayment, Kenya needs to repay the principal and interest of the loan within 20 years after the completion of the railway, but six years later, Kenya's repayment progress is far from expected.
After three years of hard work, China overcame many challenges and started in 2014 and successfully completed the construction of the railway in 2017, which has brought significant economic benefits to Kenya. Is Kenya's delay in meeting its obligations really bewitched by these falsehoods?
In fact, China has always maintained deep friendship and cooperative relations with many African countries, Kenya is one of the leaders, the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway is not only a vivid practice of China's Belt and Road Initiative, but also an important achievement of the ten major cooperation plans of the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. Increasing China's influence in Asia, Europe and Africa is of far-reaching significance.
We firmly believe that the completion of this railway will bring great development opportunities to Kenya, promote the rapid growth of the local economy and improve the quality of life of the people." At the same time, it also demonstrates China's responsibility and contribution as a responsible major country, and sets an example for the cooperation and development of the international community. In the face of groundless accusations from the Western media, we should strengthen our confidence and continue to promote China-Africa cooperation to jointly create a better future.
Kenya, a land once colonized by the British, has long suffered from inaccessibility. Before the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway was built, the people of Kenya relied on an old railway built by the British in 1901, which was no longer able to meet the growing demand for transportation due to its outdated technology and frequent accidents. Although this railway has gone through wind and rain, it still carries the daily travel and material transportation of Kenya's 54.02 million people, and its condition is really embarrassing.
However, the completion of the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, which was built by China, has brought earth-shaking changes to Kenya. As the largest infrastructure construction project in Kenya since its independence in 1963, the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway not only connects Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, and Mombasa, the largest port in East Africa, but also extends to seven East African countries including Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan and Ethiopia, becoming an important transportation artery connecting the coastal and inland areas of Africa.
The completion of the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway has not only brought huge economic benefits to Kenya, but also had a far-reaching impact in many aspects. According to statistics, during the construction of the railway alone, nearly 30,000 jobs have been created for Kenya, effectively alleviating the local employment pressure, the completion of the railway has also driven Kenya's GDP growth by 1.5% per year, injecting strong impetus into the country's economic development, and the completion of the Mombasa-Nairobi railway has also greatly reduced the local logistics cost, which is expected to be reduced by 40%, which will greatly promote the trade and economic development of Kenya and neighboring countries.
It can be said that the completion of the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway is a milestone in the history of Kenya's development, which not only improves Kenya's transportation conditions, but also lays a solid foundation for Kenya's economic development and social progress, which also fully demonstrates China's positive contribution and responsible attitude in international cooperation, and sets a new model for China-Africa friendship and cooperation.
The process of railway construction is full of challenges and hardships. In order to protect the wildlife of this ecological treasure and prevent their migration from damaging the railway, the Chinese side has set up 14 wildlife corridors and built 79 bridges to fully adapt to Kenya's unique wildlife environment. China has made tremendous efforts and painstaking efforts to build the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, and it can be said that it has spared no effort.
However, after the completion of the railway, Kenya's attitude changed. They are now defaulting on their debts, and this treacherous behavior has made China face a huge challenge. The original agreement between the two sides was to repay the loan within 20 years, but now that six years have passed, Kenya has not only not taken any action to repay the loan, but has even made an unreasonable demand for another 50 years of arrears, claiming that the railway is still in a loss-making state and will repay the loan when it is profitable.
Faced with such a situation, of course, the Chinese side cannot accept it. $3.8 billion is not a small amount, and China is not something to be slaughtered. We will not allow Kenya to continue to be in arrears like this. China will conduct in-depth communication and consultation with Kenya to seek a mutually acceptable solution, and we will take necessary measures to safeguard our legitimate rights and interests.
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