2018 - 2019 Edition of Citi Perspectives for the Public Sector

Citi Perspectives for the Public Sector |  2018-2019 17 The Belt and Road Initiative Five Years In: Making the Most of China’s International Investment Program C hina’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative is already delivering results and continues to evolve. New opportunities are emerging, both for companies and governments, to prosper from this historic program. However, selecting the right partner to provide local insights, access and solutions is critical. Five years since President Xi Jinping introduced the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), it is inarguably delivering results. In line with its original articulation as an infrastructure-focused investment program, a growing number of BRI-sponsored bridges, ports, pipelines, railways and roads around the world are under construction. Many have already delivered operating assets. Building on these successes, the BRI is expanding its reach and inspiring complementary investment programs. It now encompasses projects in Latin America and the Arctic, there are Green and Digital branches, and some companies even talk about a Belt and Road in space. The BRI’s expansion reflects both the energy of China’s outbound investors and the strong demand for infrastructure globally. Even in its original formulation in 2013, the BRI — then called “One Belt, One Road” — had the ambitious objective of connecting the countries of Eurasia and Africa with improved transportation, logistics and communications infrastructure. The countries in this first version of the BRI represented 34% of the world’s GDP, 40% of its land area and 62% of the world’s population. However, in practice, early BRI investment flowed primarily to South and Southeast Asia. Only in more recent years have funds begun to flow farther afield, realizing the BRI’s original mandate as a global investment program. Paull Randt Associate, Public Sector, Citi Akeel Akhtar Senior Associate, Public Sector, Citi Georgi Yordanov Head of CEE, Turkey & Israel, Public Sector, Citi