The Belt and Road Podcast

A Tale of Two Railroads: Financing Chinese-Built Trains in Kenya and Ethiopia - Yunnan Chen

Erik Myxter-iino Episode 18

In this episode, Erik and Juliet interview Yunnan Chen (PhD candidate at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies) about two Chinese-built railway projects, one in Kenya and one in Ethiopia. The comparison between the two cases provides reflections on how host countries negotiate over debt funding for infrastructural projects, and the logistical and cultural challenges the developers have faced in getting both projects off the ground.

Our discussion draws on Yunnan's recent article in Quartz entitled, "Ethiopia and Kenya are struggling to manage debt for their Chinese-built railways."

Recommendations

Yunnan

Juliet 

  • The Three Body Problem (三体), a novel by Liu Xin which opens during the Cultural Revolution and moves into a period of state promotion of "scientific and technological rejuvenation" through the 1990s. The English translation includes a reflection by Liu Xin on the role of the sci fi genre in stretching societal concepts of the realm of possibility, and the relationship between English and non-English language sci fi writing. 

Erik