https://www.scmp.com/rss/523979/feed Headquartered in Beijing China. It specialises in housing, infrastructure, real estate development and large-scale solar projects across Africa. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage For Washington, the Lobito Corridor rail project is meant to circumvent Chinese influence in Africa’s mineral supply chains. Once up and running, the corridor will stretch 1,600km (1,000 miles) westward through mineral-rich Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo to create a logistics corridor to the Atlantic port of Lobito in neighbouring Angola. The United States sees it as a direct rival to the China-backed 1,860km Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (Tazara), which stretches eastward from... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3352324/why-african-leaders-value-seamless-transcontinental-links-over-us-china-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3352324/why-african-leaders-value-seamless-transcontinental-links-over-us-china-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2026 06:00:11 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage The war in Iran and ensuing closure of the Strait of Hormuz has exposed the risks of over-reliance on the Persian Gulf for oil, turning Beijing’s Mediterranean infrastructure plans from long-term goals into urgent strategic necessities. From Algerian oilfields to Moroccan battery factories and Egypt’s industrial base, China might now fast-track these projects to create a Mediterranean hub for a green-energy supply chain, observers said. Beijing aims to create a strategic backup that protects its... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3350427/why-china-urgently-looking-north-africa-energy-crisis-rolls?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3350427/why-china-urgently-looking-north-africa-energy-crisis-rolls?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Apr 2026 01:00:14 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage Western governments and financiers increasingly avoid infrastructure projects that involve a Chinese presence as their geopolitical and economic rivalries intensify. Yet the Nairobi Railway City project stands as a rare exception. It combines British financing with Chinese construction and labour to build a major new public transport hub in the Kenyan capital. At the heart of the project is the proposed new Central station and a 172-hectare (425-acre) district that includes new businesses, homes... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349734/does-kenyan-rail-project-provide-model-chinese-and-western-firms-africa?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349734/does-kenyan-rail-project-provide-model-chinese-and-western-firms-africa?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 11 Apr 2026 10:00:13 +0000 Mia Nurmamat Mia Nurmamat Once dubbed the world’s tallest abandoned skyscraper, Goldin Finance 117 in northern China appears to be in the homestretch of a marathon construction effort – after nearly a decade of dormancy and a year of resumed work – even as the nation’s property market struggles to leg out a sustained recovery. Late last month, workers began installing a diamond-shaped crown on top of the building – designed to be 596 metres (1,955 feet) tall upon completion – in the port city of Tianjin, according to... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3348901/chinas-long-delayed-skyscraper-goldin-finance-117-nears-completion-amid-property-woes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3348901/chinas-long-delayed-skyscraper-goldin-finance-117-nears-completion-amid-property-woes?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Apr 2026 06:00:11 +0000 Cao Jiaxuan Cao Jiaxuan Central Asian governments are forging ahead with ambitious “smart city” mega-projects to tackle rapid population growth and ageing Soviet-era infrastructure. They are also pulling in much-needed foreign investment, and China’s strong visibility in these projects – while Russia is notably absent – is fuelling debate over whether the region is trying to reduce its economic dependence on Moscow. It comes as competition among major powers in Central Asia is intensifying, with the US-led C5+1... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343192/central-asia-builds-smart-cities-china-it-moving-away-russia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343192/central-asia-builds-smart-cities-china-it-moving-away-russia?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 12:00:08 +0000 Zhu Wenqian Zhu Wenqian Chinese companies are driving a fresh wave of investment in overseas properties, with new energy industrial facilities, cross-border e-commerce logistics centres, and smart city projects becoming investment hotspots, Knight Frank has said. Traditional residential development was on the wane, while industrial property, logistics real estate and commercial complexes were emerging as core investment priorities, according to a January report by the London-based property consultancy. It forecast that... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3341527/chinese-firms-are-scoping-out-overseas-property-what-catching-their-eye?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3341527/chinese-firms-are-scoping-out-overseas-property-what-catching-their-eye?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 08:00:10 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage Authorities in Mogadishu had cleared the roads for a historic visit, yet on Friday Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi travelled to Tanzania instead of Somalia as planned. It would have been the first high-level Chinese mission to Mogadishu in four decades. The last-minute decision not to include the capital on Wang’s itinerary came as Somalia seeks shows of diplomatic support after Israel recognised the breakaway region of Somaliland last month. A source at the presidential palace told local media... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3339584/wang-yi-cites-severe-risks-after-somalia-dropped-africa-itinerary-last-minute?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3339584/wang-yi-cites-severe-risks-after-somalia-dropped-africa-itinerary-last-minute?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 08:37:40 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage China’s big money is returning to African infrastructure as its state-owned firms evolve from mere builders into long-term financiers and operators. This is so they have enough “skin in the game”, according to one analyst, as Beijing seeks lasting influence over key transport routes and critical mineral supply chains in Africa. Across the continent, these companies are increasingly financing, building and operating key infrastructure under public-private partnerships (PPP). This financing model... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3335506/skin-game-china-pivots-operating-african-railways-ports-funding-shift?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3335506/skin-game-china-pivots-operating-african-railways-ports-funding-shift?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Dec 2025 04:00:14 +0000 Genevieve Donnellon-May Genevieve Donnellon-May Ground has quite literally been broken on a Chinese-funded project to modernise the Tanzania-Zambia railway after years of negotiations, amid intensifying “corridor wars” as major powers compete to shape transport and trade networks across not just Africa but also Eurasia and beyond. The US$1.4 billion upgrade will restore the 1,860km railway, known as Tazara, a vital corridor linking Zambia’s Copperbelt to the Indian Ocean via Tanzania’s Dar es Salaam port, connecting southern and eastern... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3335368/tazara-rail-deal-could-redefine-china-africa-ties-amid-corridor-wars?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3335368/tazara-rail-deal-could-redefine-china-africa-ties-amid-corridor-wars?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 07 Dec 2025 08:30:10 +0000 Ambrose Li Ambrose Li A nearly three-metre-tall (9.8-foot) statue of Tutankhamun, ancient Egyptian jewellery and other historical artefacts covering 4,000 years of history will be exhibited in Hong Kong next month, as ties between China and the African nation deepen under the Belt and Road Initiative. The exhibition, titled “Ancient Egypt Unveiled: Treasures from Egyptian Museums”, will be held at the Hong Kong Palace Museum from November for nine months. It is also organised in anticipation of the 70th anniversary... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3329451/hong-kong-showcase-4000-years-ancient-egypt-reinforcing-belt-and-road-ties?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3329451/hong-kong-showcase-4000-years-ancient-egypt-reinforcing-belt-and-road-ties?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Oct 2025 11:32:03 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage The Chinese state-owned construction giant that built the Mao Zedong-era Tanzania-Zambia railway is returning to the project with a US$1.4 billion commitment to overhaul and run the line as it increasingly becomes geoeconomically important for China. In a deal struck on Monday, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) agreed to an initial US$1.1 billion investment plus a further US$238 million to be reinvested into the severely dilapidated Tazara Railway, as the line is... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3327348/us14-billion-tazara-rail-deal-puts-china-fast-track-africas-copperbelt?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3327348/us14-billion-tazara-rail-deal-puts-china-fast-track-africas-copperbelt?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Oct 2025 04:00:18 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage African solar energy use is surging, with Chinese-made panels a common sight across the continent, on rooftops and in the massive renewable energy plants being built in countries such as Algeria and South Africa by companies from China. An Oxford Economics study released on Monday showed the continent welcomed a record 9,516 megawatts worth of Chinese-made solar panels in the first seven months of this year, from just 6,625MW in the same period last year. The trend reflects how Africa is... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3326649/chinese-solar-panels-rewire-africa-future-record-pace-costs-fall?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3326649/chinese-solar-panels-rewire-africa-future-record-pace-costs-fall?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Sep 2025 02:00:08 +0000