INFRAFRICA · INFRAFRICA – A comparative study of foreign-financed and foreign-built infrastructure in Africa: perspective from Ethiopia and Angola

China’s increasing presence in Africa through the Belt and Road Initiative has raised concerns about the development, governance, and foreign policy implications of Chinese-financed, Chinese-built infrastructure projects. At a time in which the European Union is putting African infrastructure investments at the centre of its Global Gateway initiative, my INFRAFRICA project— a comparative study of foreign-financed and foreign-built infrastructure in Africa: perspective from Ethiopia and Angola—expands current knowledge about foreign engagement in the African infrastructure sector. By taking the infrastructure sectors of Ethiopia and Angola as case studies, INFRAFRICA aims to contribute to three interconnected debates. First, the project evaluates the impact of foreign construction firms’ operations on the host countries’ economies. To do so, INFRAFRICA explores and compares the behaviours of Chinese firms with other foreign infrastructure firms at the micro level through critically evaluating the formation of local economic linkages. Second, INFRAFRICA explores the modalities of foreign engagement in the two African countries by investigating ways in which African state and nonstate actors negotiate with, accommodate, and contest foreign actors involved in the financing and building of infrastructure projects. Third, through exploring the political, institutional, economic, and legal contexts of the two countries, INFRAFRICA identifies the barriers that shape the negotiation, implementation, and outcomes of foreign-financed and foreign-built infrastructure projects in Africa. In carrying out my research, I will be based at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute, where I will work under the supervision of Professor Bernard Hoekman.