U.S. To Roll Out Projects To Counter China's Belt And Road Scheme

The United States plans to invest in five to 10 large infrastructure projects around the world in January as part of a broader Group of Seven program to counter China's Belt and Road Initiative, a senior US official said, Andrea Shalal reported for Reuters.

Photo Insert: Senegal is one of the countries being eyed by the US and the G7 for the B3W initiative.

A US delegation led by President Joe Biden's deputy national security adviser, Daleep Singh, identified at least 10 promising projects in Senegal and Ghana during a series of "listening tours" last week, the official said.

Officials are meeting government and private-sector leaders as they hunt for projects to be funded under the Build Back Better World (B3W) initiative launched by the G7 rich democracies in June. Plans could be finalized during a G7 meeting in December, the official said.

A US delegation also visited Ecuador, Panama, and Colombia during a similar tour in early October, with another slated to visit Asia before yearend, the official said, without naming any specific Asian countries.

The G7 B3W initiative is aimed at partially meeting the $40 trillion in infrastructure investment that developing countries will need by 2035 and providing an alternative to problematic lending practices by China, Josh Horwitz reported.

The US will offer developing countries "the full range" of US financial tools, including equity stakes, loan guarantees, political insurance, grants, and technical expertise to focus on climate, health, digital technology, and gender equality, the official told reporters.

The effort is seeking to "identify flagship projects that could launch by the start of next year," the official said. Singh was joined in Africa by Alexia Latortue, deputy chief executive officer of the Millennium Challenge Corp., and Travis Adkins, deputy assistant administrator for Africa at the US International Development Finance Corp, said Emily Horne, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council.

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