The Suez Canal is a vital sea trading route, depended upon by businesses and economies around the world. The waterway was constructed by the British and the French in the 19th century, officially opening in 1869.
This was a time when the two countries ruled Egypt and dominated a huge chunk of global trade, and ships needed an alternative routing to sailing all the way round the bottom of South Africa to travel between Europe and Asia. Nowadays, lots of different countries have contributed towards infrastructure in the area.
An example of this international collaboration is the 2.4-mile Suez Canal Bridge. The fourth longest bridge in Africa is also known as Al Salam Bridge, the Mubarak Peace Bridge and the Al Salam Peace Bridge.
Its construction started 1995 and involved multiple firms, including Nippon Steel and Kajima Corporation. It was opened for use on October 9, 2009.
As well as helping vehicles cross the canal between Africa and Asia, the structure has an underlying geo-political purpose. Egypt shared the cost with Japan, with an aim to promote ‘friendship’ between the two states.
Therefore, the bridge is also known as the Egyptian-Japanese Friendship Bridge. The Japanese grant accounted for 60 per cent of the construction cost (13.5billion yen, or £69.5million).
This was agreed during a visit of the then President of Egypt, Hosni Mubarak, to Japan in 1995, as part of a wider aim to develop the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt paid the remaining 40 per cent (9billion yen or £46.3million).
Devdiscourse reported in November that the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) – a body created by African states to ‘provide pragmatic solutions’ to the continent’s ‘infrastructure deficit’ – has entered into a partnership with the Japan Institute for Overseas Investment (JOI). The aim of this is to ‘catalyse Japanese investments in Africa’.
The JOI describes itself as a ‘nodal point for information for global business development. The body adds that it works with ‘a wide range of domestic and foreign law firms’.
So, who knows, we may see another huge project like the Al Salam Bridge being constructed in the future.
Japan is not the only East Asian country investing cash into Africa. According to the World Economic Forum, China has emerged as the largest bilateral creditor to Africa.
This includes giving countries infrastructure, mining and energy financing. In 2003, the annual foreign direct investment (FDI) flow from China to Africa was approximately $75 million.
This peaked at $5 billion in 2022. The framework for this flow of cash is the country’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
This is a global development strategy launched in 2013. It has reportedly funded a new Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) in Kenya, the Maputo–Katembe bridge in Mozambique and the Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway in Ethiopia.
