US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday that Washington’s engagement in infrastructure in African countries was about improving infrastructure standards without burdening the countries with debt and did not have anything to do with China.
Mr Blinken was questioned about the US-China rivalry for infrastructure investment on the continent, where China has strengthened its influence in recent years.
“When it comes to infrastructure investment, again, this is not about China or anyone else, it is about what we would like to think of as a race to the top when it comes to those investments,” Mr Blinken said at a joint news conference with Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama.
Blinken added that although Chinese investment in Africa was a good thing in theory, nations should not be left with “tremendous debt that they cannot repay” and that workers’ rights, environmental protection, and anti-corruption measures should all be in place.
He went on to say that as part of the G7’s “Build Back Better World” initiative, developed nations will invest in Africa.
On Thursday, Mr Blinken signed a $2.17 billion (N891.52 billion) development assistance agreement with Mr Onyeama, adding that the US will continue to invest in Nigeria’s security.
Nigeria required Chinese assistance to address a major infrastructure gap, Mr Onyeama added, and that the debt the country had taken on was “sustainable”.
China is one of Nigeria’s key bilateral financiers, having contributed funding for infrastructure projects such as roads, rail, and gas pipelines.
