How the US-China rivalry is undermining efforts to address Africa’s debt

Africa’s growing debt has been increasingly framed as a consequence of China’s alleged aims of unscrupulously lending money to gain political leverage and seize African assets when states default. New research challenges this narrative and examines the continent’s debt position in relation to global institutional frameworks. Harry Verhoeven and Nicolas Lippolis argue that new Western-led initiatives, which mostly ignore Chinese concerns and incentives, leave debt issues unresolved and create zero-sum thinking about Africa’s structural indebtedness.