Xi Pledges $50 Billion for Africa to Shore Up China’s Influence

President Xi Jinping unveiled a raft of economic sweeteners for Africa, showcasing China’s commitment to strengthening its sway over a continent that’s key to his geopolitical ambitions.

Xi vowed to provide $50 billion in financial support at the ninth triennial Forum on China-Africa Cooperation held in Beijing on Thursday. That included a pledge to triple China’s credit lines to the continent to $30 billion, despite an economic slowdown at home that’s threatening Beijing’s annual growth goal.

Beijing’s commitment marked a 25% up tick from the last forum, when the Asian nation’s financial pledge to the content fell for the first time in over a decade. The Chinese leader also guaranteed greater support for training African military and government personnel, in a further sign of deepening ties.

“This is not the kind of pledge that is going to finance large-scale mega infrastructure projects in Africa,” said Eric Olander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project, but the amount “does enough to preserve the narrative that China is as committed to Africa as it’s been in the past.”

Xi didn’t specify where or how the money would be deployed, but Olander said the credit could finance purchases of “vast quantities of solar panels, batteries and EVs” — the “new three” green sectors Beijing is betting on to propel the world’s No. 2 economy out of a housing slump.

The continent that struggles with reliable power was the fastest growing region for Chinese exports of solar panels last year. Xi touted China as a partner in African countries’ transition to renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar, saying it would help build “green growth engines.”