Local and international experts and diplomats on Wednesday discussed what they called China’s “bad governance model” in Africa, criticizing it for creating unpayable debts for countries in that continent.
They highlighted Taiwan’s model in Somaliland as an alternative, at a half-day symposium, themed “China’s Bad Governance Model for Africa — Alternative Visions,” which was organized by the Taipei-based non-governmental organization, Taiwan Inspiration Association.
Eric T. Schultz, former United States ambassador to Zambia told the Taipei seminar that the landlocked African country where he was posted from 2014 to 2017 is widely considered “Ground Zero” for China’s Investment on the continent.
He said that since the Patriotic Front government assumed power in 2011, Zambia has worked hand-in-hand with China on a number of major construction programs.
Unfortunately, as part of these deals, only Chinese companies were allowed to compete, meaning the profits were ultimately shared by Chinese companies and government officials, while ordinary Zambians received none of the benefits, Schultz said.
In total, Beijing provided more than US$10 billion in loans to Zambia during the Patriotic Front administration — from 2011 to 2021 — which was as much as 50 percent of the country’s GDP, he noted.
Using the case of Zambia as an example, the retired envoy urged the U.S. and its democratic allies, including Taiwan, to do more to help African countries repay Chinese debt.
“We should work to expand the reach and influence of democratic rule, while expanding the reach and influence of commerce,” he said.
Doing so is not intended to “impose our views, but by encouraging we should help African countries manage the burden of China,” he added.
Schultz encouraged democratic allies to help African countries press China for better terms, debt forgiveness, and interest forgiveness.
An alternative to China’s bad governance model, is the relationship between Taiwan and Somaliland, according to Taiwan’s representative to Allen Lou (羅震華).
Lou praised Somaliland as the “only country to say no to China in Africa.”
In contrast to the Chinese model in Africa, Taiwan’s model of cooperation focuses on “people centric, knowledge transfers, and capacity building,” Lou said at the symposium.
Ultimately, Taiwan wants to create a model in Somaliland to win more friends in East Africa, the envoy said.
Lou also called on more like-minded partners headed by the U.S. to join such cooperation in Somaliland “so we can work together to achieve more.”
Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 and has functioned as a de facto state ever since, but it has yet to be recognized diplomatically by any other country in the world.
Taiwan and Somaliland set up representative offices in each other’s capitals in 2020.