https://www.reuters.com/world/ghana-finance-minister-travels-china-debt-talks-source-2023-03-20/
Ken Ofori-Atta, the Finance Minister of Ghana will travel to Beijing to discuss the repayment of nearly 1.7 billion in debt that Ghana owes to China after a Bilateral loan that Ghana took from the IMF. Ghana is currently in the midst of its worst economic crisis in decades. The IMF agreed to loan Ghana 3 billion in December, a loan that Ghana had to provide financial insurance to collect. The meeting with China is said to “focus on ways to reduce Ghana’s debt burden and secure additional financing assurances for the country’s economic programme.”
A large part of China’s geopolitical goals at the moment come from the Chain of Pearls initiative. This plan involves China securing naval presence, influence, and in some instances even bases, in south asia and Africa. As a export dependent economy, it is vital that China has shipping lanes to transport goods by water, and highly preferable that those lanes be tax free for the Chinese. Ghana is not geographically close to the String of Pearls, the route itself goes from south China, past Malaysia, through the Arabian and Red Seas, and finally through the Suez Canal. However, China may be using these deals to gain greater influence over the greater Sub-Saharan region, securing a foothold for later pearls in the string.
This is an example of an NGO. As we discussed in class, an NGO is an agreement made up of more than one nation, most of the time with specific goals. In the case of the IMF, the goal is to provide loans to countries that need help developing or recovering. This also, however, is an example of how NGOs can be hijacked for personal gain. As previously mentioned China may be using the IMF as a pathway to gain influence over Sub-Saharan Africa, furthering its economic interests.