What is the Belt and Road initiative of the PRC? How does the LAC fit in the picture and what are the implications for the region?
There was a noticeable jump in the annual Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) in and since the year 2010. While the annual Chinese FDI was around $5 billion before 2010, it has gone up to $72.5 billion in the last seven years. In the year 2017, China was the largest investor in the LAC in terms of mergers and acquisitions deals of around $18 billion dollars. Between 2005 – 2017, Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Ecuador and Venezuela were top five LAC destinations for the Chinese FDI. Some of the largest acquisitions include Repsol in Brazil (Oil industry), Las Bambas Mine in Peru (Mining industry), Petrogal Brasil in Brazil (Oil industry), Bridas in Argentia (Oil industry), etc. Within the Caribbean, the Alpart Alumina Refinery in Jamaica was sold for US$299 million to the Jiuquan Iron and Steel Company (JISCo). Trinidad & Tobago, along with other Caribbean nations have signed up for the famous “Belt and Road Initiative” of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). T&T has grown closer to the Chinese firms since the closure of the Petrotrin Refinery. It has already committed to the China Harbour Engineering Corporation (CHEC) to build a $500 million dry-dock facility in La Brea, the same company which financed US$730m for a road to connect the Jamaican capital Kingston to the tourist spot of Ocho Rios. This is apart from other signature projects in T&T like substantial positions in the telecom sector, gifts of motorcycles for the police, new Chinese buses, the Brian Lara Cricket stadium, National Academy of Performing Arts along with the Southern Academy of Performing Arts, the South terminal of the Piarco International Airport and the Couva Children’s Hospital. The Dominican Republic has cut-off diplomatic ties with Taiwan at China’s behest. In return, they expect around $3 billion dollars in financing. The China Civil Engineering Construction (CCECC) already has an office in Santo Domingo to purportedly build the northeast Dominican Republic – Haiti railway.
What is the Belt and Road initiative of the PRC? How does the LAC fit in the picture and what are the implications for the region?
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