Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed and promoted the belt and road initiative 3 years ago, championing it as a new model of cooperation that will stimulate common development and prosperity. Evidently, this has become the most important feature of China's foreign policy. Many perceive it as China's contribution to the new world order.

The initiative principally aims to interconnect countries in Africa, Europe, and Asia through an ambitious project of infrastructure, economic and political cooperation. The developing countries that have enlisted in this concept are by and large looking at its economic aspects.

This Chinese-led concept is gaining momentum in Africa and it's easy to see why. Even though it still regards herself as a developing nation, China's economic success sets an example the world must follow. The Beijing-based administration hopes that this success can be replicated especially in Africa.

In the opinion of president Xi, the One Belt One Road concept will provide African countries with new opportunities to unleash their potential for strong development.

China's path to prosperity, for instance, can be traced to its own domestic connectivity. China has developed a robust railway, road and air infrastructure throughout the country. China boasts of thousands and thousands of miles of expressways, more than any other country in the world.

The Asian economic giant has built an extensive modern cross- country railway network connecting regions that are thousands of miles apart. The country has also developed so many airports in the last 30 years. Going by this trend, it is easy to say, so many of China's economic goals hinge on transport.

Africa's Industrialization

The bountiful benefits of constructing such an elaborate infrastructure are something that developing countries must look at.

The African Union has so far launched agenda 2063, which aims at accelerating the modernization and industrialization of Africa. Keen observers maintain that The "Belt and Road" initiative provides a strategic chance to anchor China's development strategy with this African vision.

Economic experts hold the view that lack of connectivity has been the greatest impediment to Africa's growth. Both as individual countries and as a region, the continent lacks efficient transport infrastructure.

"Africa is well endowed with rich natural resources. The continent has a huge potential. It has the capacity to set up huge industries. The biggest problem, however, is that even the neighboring countries are not connected. Movement is restricted." Noted Prof Wang Yiwei of the Renmin University in Beijing.

In his opinion, Africa has the capacity to reduce rising poverty levels. To address this, Prof Wang says developing countries of Africa, individually and collectively must pursue industrialization. This he says will help Africa increase self-development capacity. Yet to attain booming industrialization, his counterpart from Tsinghua University Prof. Kejin Zhao says African governments must embrace China's One Belt One Road strategy.

"To be specific, they need to improve the region's infrastructure, and put in place a secure and efficient network of land, sea and air passages, lifting their connectivity to a higher level." He says The two scholars insist that Belt and Road projects in Africa will further enhance trade and investment facilitation, establish a network of free trade areas that meet high standards, maintain closer economic ties. This they say will cultivate an environment that is conducive for investments.

Moreover, Wang and Zhao say this concept will enhance cultural exchanges, encouraging different civilizations to learn from each other and flourish together.

Kenya's Example

Within Africa, the fruits of Road and Belt infrastructural connectivity are already being felt in Kenya. The construction of the Kshs.327 billion Standard Gauge Railway and the subsequent expansion of the port of Mombasa by the Chinese has seen the country attract many multinationals which have expressed desire to invest in the East African country.

SGR, which is set for commissioning next month, will connect Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa to the capital Nairobi. The next phases of SGR expansion will connect Nairobi to Naivasha, Kisumu, Malaba then Uganda, Rwanda, and South Sudan.

The Lamu port is another project that is being undertaken by the Chinese. Once complete, the port will connect South Sudan and Ethiopia.

Economic experts hold the view that this will fuel the potential for increased economic growth and development of Kenya and all countries involved. In their opinion, trading centers will sprout along the railway line. In the process, the food, clothing, construction and training sectors among others will flourish.

These benefits may not be visible at present but President Uhuru Kenyatta has lauded the initiative saying it will catalyze the country's growth into 2030 and beyond.

"We must view the substantial investment in Railway as a worthy investment to underpin the regional economic agenda. An economy only thrives in the foundation of proper infrastructure." He said.

Sharing Concept

At the heart of this initiative is the spirit of sharing. China is leading in this regard. At present, China is restructuring and upgrading its industrial structure and exporting excess manufacturing capacity.

Economic analysts argue that due to the rising cost of labor, China's labor-intensive industries are transferring some of their manufacturing to Africa. The continent stands to benefit greatly from this shift.

Ethiopian shoe and textile industry, developed by China's Hujian Group, is a classic example. This has generated employment given that the factories now employ more than 6,000 locals.

The Hujian group which is investing heavily in Ethiopia has also signed a deal worth 1.5 billion US dollars with Nigeria to develop a shoe factory in Abia state. The group's founder and President Mr. Zhang Huarong insists that many other Chinese enterprises are keen to set up base in Africa as long as the conditions are favorable.

Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania are other African countries that are said to be pursuing China's textile investments through planned development of industrial parks.

Prof Zhao estimates that between 5 to 10 African countries will see their industrial sectors take off within the next five years as manufacturing shifts from Asia.

For all intents and purposes, One Belt One Road initiative is out to propagate investment trade facilitations, reduced investment and trade barriers, lower trade investment costs as well as promote regional economic integration among member countries.

Yet this is not all, given that the mechanism as currently set up will bring about Africa's own "opening up" since among other things, Belt and Road seeks to connect landlocked countries. China's growing presence in Africa cannot be overemphasized. Statistics show that by the end of 2015, Chinese companies had established more than 3,000 enterprises in Africa. These enterprises are scattered across Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, South Africa, DRC, Nigeria, Zambia, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Mauritius, and Angola.

These Chinese outbound investments need favorable conditions to thrive if the local countries must benefit from their operations. To achieve this, Africa must address bottlenecks which impede trade. The structure and the spirit of Road and Belt provides a legitimate avenue to solve this problem.

Africa wants to develop industries as a means to economic independence. Industrialization is, however, impossible without connectivity. Speed is of the essence. The One Belt and One Road concept will help the continent achieve this dream.

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