Niger coup can blight Chinese investments in Africa’s Sahel region
Niger’s military officer and chief of presidential guard General Abdourahamane Tchiani carried out a coup and ousted President Mohamed Bazoum from power just a few days after China’s Ambassador to the West African country Jiang Feng met him to discuss building of an industrial park in the capital Niamey in what is a lesser-known fact. The proposed industrial park, it is said, will have a significant impact on sectors like food, manufacturing, mining, and real estate of Niger.
There are reports that the ousted Niger President Mohamed Bazoum, reportedly close to the West, used to also hold regular interactions with Chinese officials and businessmen. Earlier on June 27, according to a report in the South China Morning Post, Bazoum who entered presidential office in 2021 in Niger’s first democratic and peaceful transition of power since independence in 1960, met a delegation from the China National Uranium Corporation (CNUC).
During the meeting both sides discussed the condition for the takeover of the Société des mines d’Azelik (SOMINA)---a joint venture which was set up in 2007 to excavate uranium at Azelik mines in Niger’s Agadez region, the Hong Kong-based English daily newspaper said. China’s CNUC has a 62% stake in SOMINA, while the government of Niger has 33% and a South Korean company has a 5% stake in the joint venture.
China is the second largest investor in Niger after France and in the last two decades, it has pumped in huge amount in the landlocked West African nation, according to media reports. According to China’s Ministry of Commerce, the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) has invested $4.6 billion in Niger’s oil sector, while the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) has invested $480 million
. Read more on economictimes.indiatimes.com
