FAIR-BRI

China is, by far, the world’s largest source of bilateral official finance. China’s two main policy banks that lend to governments overseas – the China Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank of China – together issued about as much in sovereign finance commitments as the World Bank in the last global business cycle (2008-2019). At that scale, it is crucial for policymakers and stakeholders at all levels to understand the environmental and social implications of this finance.

The Global China Initiative’s FAIR-BRI (Forestry, Agriculture and Indigenous Rights in the Belt and Road Initiative) program examines these aspects, with a special focus on land use, biodiversity and natural resources critical for Indigenous communities worldwide.

Research Highlights

FAIR-BRI – Latest News and Publications

• GDP Center Round-Up: Fall 2022 Global China Research Colloquium

  December 21, 2022

  By Christina Duran From post-pandemic industrialization to COVID-19 and southern African sovereign debt, researchers from around the world explored a variety of topics as part of the Fall 2022 Global China Initiative Research Colloquium over the past four months. The webinar... [ More ]

• Chart of the Week: Energy Finance Commitments by Major Development Finance Institutions, 2016-2021

  December 14, 2022

  By Christina Duran Last month, countries met in Egypt for the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) to discuss progress on achieving climate goals with a focus on the Global South. The presence of one country in particular loomed large... [ More ]

• “Blue-ing” the BRI: Mitigating the Marine Risks of China’s Overseas Development Finance

  December 06, 2022

  By Rebecca Ray From 2020-2022, China has presided over the Council of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP). Their leadership has included the establishment of the Kunming Biodiversity Fund and the consideration of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity... [ More ]

• Webinar Summary – Diversifying the Belt and Road Initiative: The Rise of China’s Overseas Development Investment Funds

  November 17, 2022

  By Christina Duran On Tuesday, November 8, 2022, the Boston University Global Development Policy (GDP) Center hosted a webinar discussion on the diversification of Chinese overseas economic engagement for its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The webinar, as part of the... [ More ]

• Spot the Difference: Comparing the Belt Road Initiative and the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment

  November 14, 2022

  By Oyintarelado Moses, Anjali Kini and Keren Zhu The Group of 20 (G20) meetings are taking place in Indonesia this week, and top agenda items include financial stability and sustainable development. Infrastructure finance gaps in the Global South have widened in... [ More ]

• The Belt and Road Initiative and the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment: Global Infrastructure Initiatives in Comparison

  November 14, 2022

  Infrastructure financing gaps in the Global South have widened in recent years with the need for addressing connectivity bottlenecks and climate-related challenges. To achieve the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), an additional $3.2 trillion or 2 percent of... [ More ]

• Beyond Policy Banks: The Overseas Development Investment Funds Financing the Belt and Road Initiative

  November 04, 2022

  By Oyintarelado Moses and Laura Gormley Through the ‘Going Out’ strategy and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China has become the largest source of official bilateral development finance. However, after reaching a peak in 2016, overseas development finance from China’s two... [ More ]

• China’s Paid-In Capital: Identifying and Analyzing China’s Overseas Development Investment Funds

  October 31, 2022

  China’s ‘Going Out’ strategy and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) launched China to be the world’s largest source of cumulative bilateral official development finance. However, in recent years, overseas development finance from China’s policy banks has declined and China’s outward... [ More ]

• How Chinese Capital Has Gone Global: Q&A with Min Ye

  October 26, 2022

  By Liaoguo Chen China’s overseas development finance has increased significantly over the last two decades, making China the largest bilateral official creditor in the world. The launch of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2013 has brought China’s overseas investment... [ More ]

• Webinar Summary – The ‘China Boom’ in the Amazon Basin: Social and Environmental Regulation amid a Commodity Supercycle

  October 24, 2022

  By Yudong (Nathan) Liu On Tuesday, October 11, 2022, the Boston University Global Development Policy (GDP) Center hosted a webinar discussion with Paulo Esteves, Coordinator of the Socio-Environmental Platform and the Global South Unit for Mediation at the BRICS Policy Center... [ More ]

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