{"id":2604,"date":"2017-12-28T10:30:07","date_gmt":"2017-12-28T15:30:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/?page_id=2604"},"modified":"2026-05-05T16:47:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T20:47:09","slug":"gci","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/research\/gci\/","title":{"rendered":"GLOBAL CHINA INITIATIVE"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>The Global China Initiative<\/strong> (GCI) advances policy-oriented research on China\u2019s overseas economic activity and engagement with international institutions in order to enable financial stability, human well-being and environmental sustainability.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>GLOBAL CHINA RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n<figure id=\"attachment32096\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment32096\" style=\"width: 512px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/gdp\/files\/2025\/11\/shawn-clark-P84xh3q3ccE-unsplash-636x424.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"502\" height=\"334\" class=\"wp-image-32096 \" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2025\/11\/shawn-clark-P84xh3q3ccE-unsplash-636x424.jpg 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2025\/11\/shawn-clark-P84xh3q3ccE-unsplash-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2025\/11\/shawn-clark-P84xh3q3ccE-unsplash-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2025\/11\/shawn-clark-P84xh3q3ccE-unsplash-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/files\/2025\/11\/shawn-clark-P84xh3q3ccE-unsplash-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 502px) 100vw, 502px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment32096\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luanda, Angola. Photo by Shawn Clark via Unsplash<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span>Between 2000-2024, 42 Chinese lenders signed 1,319 loan commitments amounting to $180.87 billion with 49 African governments and seven regional institutions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span aria-label=\"\u00a0\" class=\"c-mrkdwn__br\" data-stringify-type=\"paragraph-break\"><\/span><span>In 2025, the <\/span><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\"><a target=\"_blank\" class=\"c-link\" data-stringify-link=\"http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/chinas-overseas-development-finance\/\" delay=\"150\" data-sk=\"tooltip_parent\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/chinese-loans-to-africa-database\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Chinese Loans to Africa (CLA) Database<\/a><\/b><span>, managed by the Boston University Global Development Policy Center, recorded just under $2.1 billion of Chinese loans commitments to Africa which remained concentrated among a small group of borrowers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span aria-label=\"\u00a0\" class=\"c-mrkdwn__br\" data-stringify-type=\"paragraph-break\"><\/span><span>A\u00a0<\/span><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\"><i data-stringify-type=\"italic\"><a target=\"_blank\" class=\"c-link\" data-stringify-link=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2025\/06\/10\/peer-to-peer-lending-chinas-overseas-development-finance-pivots-to-national-and-regional-development-banks\/\" delay=\"150\" data-sk=\"tooltip_parent\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2025\/11\/13\/selective-engagement-and-strategic-retooling-chinese-loans-to-africa-database-2000-2024\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">new policy brief<\/a><\/i><\/b><span> analyzes the state of Chinese lending to Africa reflected in this database update. The current level reflects China\u2019s ongoing strategic recalibration of its economic engagement with African countries.<\/span><\/p>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/chinese-loans-to-africa-database\/\" class=\"button\">Explore the Data<\/a>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2025\/11\/13\/selective-engagement-and-strategic-retooling-chinese-loans-to-africa-database-2000-2024\/\" class=\"button\">Read the Policy Brief<\/a>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp-cn\/2025\/11\/13\/selective-engagement-and-strategic-retooling-chinese-loans-to-africa-database-2000-2024\/\" class=\"button\">\u9605\u8bfb\u653f\u7b56\u7b80\u62a5\u6458\u8981<\/a>\n<p><!-- CUSTOM CSS --><\/p>\n<style>.gegi-custom .col-sm-margin-half { position: relative; display: block; height: 0; } .gegi-custom .col-sm-margin-half > .landing-calloutCenter { position: absolute; padding-right: 20px; padding-left: 20px; width: 100%; left: 0; top: 50%; display: block; -webkit-transform: translateY(-50%); -moz-transform: translateY(-50%); -ms-transform: translateY(-50%); transform: translateY(-50%); } .gegi-custom h3.landing-calloutTitle { font-size: 28px; text-align:center; margin:0 } .gegi-custom .col-sm-margin-half { background:#02BAB9 center center no-repeat; } @media (max-width: 500px) { .gegi-custom h3.landing-calloutTitle { font-size: 24px; } .gegi-custom div.landing-calloutCenter,.col-sm-margin-half { padding-top: 15%; padding-bottom: 15%; }} @media (min-width: 500px) { .gegi-custom .col-sm-margin-half div.landing-calloutCenter,.col-sm-margin-half { padding-top: 10%; padding-bottom: 10%; }} @media (min-width: 768px) { .gegi-custom .col-sm-margin-half div.landing-calloutCenter,.col-sm-margin-half { padding-top: 15%; padding-bottom: 15%; }} @media (min-width: 992px) { .gegi-custom .col-sm-margin-half div.landing-calloutCenter,.col-sm-margin-half { padding-top: 18%; padding-bottom: 18%; }} @media (min-width: 1200px) { .gegi-custom h3.landing-calloutTitle { font-size: 32px; } .gegi-custom .col-sm-margin-half div.landing-calloutCenter,.col-sm-margin-half { padding-top: 18%; padding-bottom: 18%; }}<\/style>\n<p><!-- END CUSTOM CSS --><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\">Explore the research<\/h3>\n<div id=\"GEGI-mainpage\" class=\"gegi-custom\">\n<aside class=\"landing-calloutWrap\">\n<div class=\"col-full col-sm-margin-half\" style=\"background-image: url('\/gdp\/files\/2021\/06\/markus-spiske-KeFyYzxqmH0-unsplash-scaled.jpg'); width: -webkit-fill-available;\">\n<div class=\"landing-calloutCenter\">\n<h3 class=\"landing-calloutTitle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/research\/databases\/global-china-databases\/\">Databases<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-full col-sm-margin-half\" style=\"background-image: url('\/gdp\/files\/2021\/08\/edward-he-uKyzXEc2k_s-unsplash-copy-scaled-e1628687858101.jpg');\">\n<div class=\"landing-calloutCenter\">\n<h3 class=\"landing-calloutTitle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/research\/gci\/chinese-development-finance\/\">International Financial Architecture<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-full col-sm-margin-half\" style=\"background-image: url('\/gdp\/files\/2022\/02\/9.png');\">\n<div class=\"landing-calloutCenter\">\n<h3 class=\"landing-calloutTitle\"><a href=\"\/gdp\/research\/gci\/belt-road-initiative\/\">FAIR<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-full col-sm-margin-half\" style=\"background-image: url('\/gdp\/files\/2022\/02\/11.png');\">\n<div class=\"landing-calloutCenter\">\n<h3 class=\"landing-calloutTitle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/research\/gci\/energy-climate\/\">Energy and Climate<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-full col-sm-margin-half\" style=\"background-image: url('\/gdp\/files\/2022\/02\/10.png');\">\n<div class=\"landing-calloutCenter\">\n<h3 class=\"landing-calloutTitle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/research\/gci\/latin-america-and-the-caribbean\/\">Latin America and the Caribbean<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-full col-sm-margin-half\" style=\"background-image: url('\/gdp\/files\/2021\/10\/2.png'); width: -webkit-fill-available;\">\n<div class=\"landing-calloutCenter\">\n<h3 class=\"landing-calloutTitle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2021\/10\/22\/now-accepting-pre-and-post-doctoral-fellow-applications-for-global-china-initiative-fellowship-program\/\">Global China Fellows Program<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<aside class=\"landing-calloutWrap\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Latest News &amp; Publications<\/h3>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/about-us\/newsletters\/\" class=\"button\">Receive Updates from GCI through the GDP Center Newsletter<\/a>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/share.hsforms.com\/1tVhRbVUzQSeF1KmvLfy2Pw51mi0\" class=\"button\">\u8ba2\u9605\u201c\u4e2d\u56fd\u4e0e\u5168\u7403\u53d1\u5c55\u9879\u76ee\u201d\u5b9a\u671f\u4e2d\u6587\u90ae\u4ef6\u66f4\u65b0<\/a>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><ul class=\"news_list category_72\"><li class=\"post_33128\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/29\/brokers-on-the-ground-chinese-commercial-creditors-entry-into-africa-sovereign-development-finance\/\">Brokers on the Ground: Chinese Commercial Creditors\u2019 Entry into Africa Sovereign Development Finance<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">May 29, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nBy Tianyi Wu\r\n\r\nThe portfolio of financiers participating in China's overseas development finance is changing. Between 2000 and 2019, development finance institutions (DFIs), primarily the Export-Import... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/29\/brokers-on-the-ground-chinese-commercial-creditors-entry-into-africa-sovereign-development-finance\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_33047\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/26\/the-growth-connections-between-china-and-the-global-south-a-review-and-a-refocus\/\">The Growth Connections Between China and the Global South: A Review and a Refocus<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">May 26, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nAs late as 1984, half of China\u2019s exports consisted of raw materials, including oil, coal, food and livestock. After 47 years of reform and opening, <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/26\/the-growth-connections-between-china-and-the-global-south-a-review-and-a-refocus\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_33030\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/20\/what-new-data-reveals-about-china-africa-economic-ties\/\">What New Data Reveals About China-Africa Economic Ties<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">May 20, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nBy Mengdi Yue\r\n\r\nChina and Africa\u2019s economic relationship has continued to evolve over the last decade. Recent milestones include the ten partnership actions announced at the... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/20\/what-new-data-reveals-about-china-africa-economic-ties\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_33020\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/20\/china-africa-economic-bulletin-2026-edition\/\">China-Africa Economic Bulletin, 2026 Edition<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">May 20, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\nA series of concurrent shocks have posed significant challenges to the African continent, including the recent global pullback by the US whose effects fall disproportionately... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/20\/china-africa-economic-bulletin-2026-edition\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_32990\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/14\/how-can-chinas-debt-sustainability-analysis-better-serve-global-souths-development-goals\/\">How Can China&#8217;s Debt Sustainability Analysis Better Serve Global South&#8217;s Development Goals?<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">May 14, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nBy Tianyi Wu\r\n\r\nThe current debt and development crisis in the Global South has resurfaced a long-standing tension in sovereign development finance: do tools designed to... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/14\/how-can-chinas-debt-sustainability-analysis-better-serve-global-souths-development-goals\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_32981\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/14\/debt-sustainability-with-chinese-characteristics-norm-convergence-and-its-limits-in-sovereign-lending\/\">Debt Sustainability with Chinese Characteristics: Norm Convergence and Its Limits in Sovereign Lending<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">May 14, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nIn 2019, China introduced the Belt and Road Initiative Debt Sustainability Framework (BRI\u2013DSF) for low-income countries (LICs), offering a critical window into sovereign lending risk... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/14\/debt-sustainability-with-chinese-characteristics-norm-convergence-and-its-limits-in-sovereign-lending\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_32966\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/08\/gdp-center-signs-partnership-agreement-with-shanghai-university-of-international-business-and-economics\/\">GDP Center Signs Partnership Agreement with Shanghai University of International Business and Economics<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">May 08, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nTo reinforce commitments to international cooperation and policy research for global change, the Global Development Policy (GDP) Center has officially signed a new international academic... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/08\/gdp-center-signs-partnership-agreement-with-shanghai-university-of-international-business-and-economics\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_32907\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/04\/why-competitive-politics-can-pull-development-finance-away-from-need\/\">Why Competitive Politics Can Pull Development Finance Away from Need<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">May 04, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nBy Keyi Tang\r\n\r\nAs development finance tightens, the most important question may not be who is lending, but how domestic politics shapes where the money goes.\r\n\r\nWhen... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/05\/04\/why-competitive-politics-can-pull-development-finance-away-from-need\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_32887\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/04\/30\/commodity-price-linked-bonds-enhancing-debt-resilience-in-commodity-dependent-economies\/\">Commodity-Price-Linked Bonds: Enhancing Debt Resilience in Commodity-Dependent Economies<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">April 30, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nBy early 2025, debt servicing pressures had intensified. Interest payments exceed 10 percent of government revenues in 56 developing countries\u2014double the level a decade earlier\u2014and... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/04\/30\/commodity-price-linked-bonds-enhancing-debt-resilience-in-commodity-dependent-economies\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<li class=\"post_32879\">\n<h4 class=\"news_post_title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/04\/29\/disentangling-decision-making-chinese-overseas-infrastructure-finance-in-africa\/\">Disentangling Decision-Making: Chinese Infrastructure Finance in Africa<\/a><\/h4>\n<span class=\"date\">April 29, 2026<\/span>\n<p class=\"excerpt\">\r\n\r\nBy Tianyi Wu\r\n\r\nIn 2016, China committed $28.8 billion in infrastructure loans to African countries\u2013\u2013a record peak that has been followed by a rapid drop as... <a class=\"more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/2026\/04\/29\/disentangling-decision-making-chinese-overseas-infrastructure-finance-in-africa\/\">[ More ]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n\n<\/ul>\n<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"button\" href=\"\/gdp\/publications\/gci-publications\/\">Explore all GCI Publications<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- Global site tag (gtag.js) - Google Analytics --><script async src=\"https:\/\/www.googletagmanager.com\/gtag\/js?id=UA-118442141-1\"><\/script><script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'UA-118442141-1');<\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Global China Initiative (GCI) advances policy-oriented research on China\u2019s overseas economic activity and engagement with international institutions in order to enable financial stability, human well-being and environmental sustainability. GLOBAL CHINA RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT Between 2000-2024, 42 Chinese lenders signed 1,319 loan commitments amounting to $180.87 billion with 49 African governments and seven regional institutions. In [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10886,"featured_media":4849,"parent":26,"menu_order":2,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2604"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10886"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2604"}],"version-history":[{"count":55,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32926,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2604\/revisions\/32926"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/26"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/gdp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}