As of Tuesday, Equatorial Guinea is the recipient of $2 billion in infrastructure funding from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBS).
Equatorial Guinea is a small state in west Africa, about the size of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. It’s also one of the largest oil producers in sub-Saharan Africa. This combination of oil wealth and small size (an estimated population of just 722,000) has resulted in the highest GDP per capita in all of Africa ($20,581 in 2013, according to the World Bank), although income inequality is a major concern.
According to Reuters, the new deal will see ICBC provide some funding directly to Equatorial Guinea’s government. Other funds will be allocated to Chinese firms operating in the country, to support their investments. Africa as a whole is the “strategic and development heart of ‘going out,’” ICBC said in a statement. The Chinese government’s “going out” policy, rolled out in 2001, encourages Chinese companies to invest abroad as part of a strategy to increase global recognition of Chinese firms.
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