Kenyan Standard Gauge Railway Not Victim of Chinese Debt Trap Diplomacy

 The Conversation published on 16 May 2022 a commentary titled "Mombasa Port: How Kenya's Auditor-General Misread China's Standard Gauge Railway Contracts" by Deborah Brautigam.

In 2018, a leaked letter from the former Kenyan auditor-general's office sparked a rumor that Kenya had staked Mombasa Port as collateral for the Chinese-financed Standard Gauge Railway, leading to charges of debt trap diplomacy.  A detailed study by the China-Africa Research Initiative concluded that the rumor stemmed from a misreading by the former auditor-general, who mistakenly labelled the ports authority as a borrower, responsible for repaying the Chinese railway loans.

China's Sovereign Immunity Clauses Pose Challenge in Africa

 The London School of Economics (LSE) posted on 1 December 2020 a blog item titled "What Do Sovereign Immunity Clauses Mean for Chinese Engagement in Africa?" by Uche Igwe, LSE.  

Some Africans see sovereign immunity clauses in Chinese loan agreements as a ploy to recolonize Africa while others ask whether these loans are a form of debt-trap diplomacy.  The author calls for an Afro-centric interrogation of the China-Africa relationship that provides a framework for effective citizen engagement.