China Eximbank provides RMB 1.134 billion government concessional loan for Mali Digital 2020 Project

On September 28, 2018, the Government of Mali and China Eximbank signed an RMB 1.134 billion (XOF 93,790,872,000) government concessional loan (GCL) agreement for the Mali Digital 2020 Project. The borrowing terms of the GCL are unknown. However, it is known that the proceeds of the GCL were to be used by the borrower to finance a commercial contract between the Government of Mali and China International Telecommunications Construction Corporation (CITCC). The purpose of the project is to lay 817.4 km of intercity fiber optic cable, install twelve OSN 3500 type terminals, install a a GPON (Gigabit Passive Optical Network) urban network with 100 km of fiber optic cable, and install about 50 GPON terminals to interconnect the government institutions. More specifically, the project involves laying fiber optic cables to connecting the cities of Kidal, Gao and Timbuktu to the city of Mopti; laying fiber optic cable along the Gao-Ansongo-Labbezanga-Nigerian border route; laying fiber optic cable along the Kidal-Algerian border route; laying fiber optic cable along the Bamako-Kourémalé-Guinean border route; laying fiber optic cable along the Sevaré – Koro-Burkina Faso border route; establishing a surveillance network made up of 200 cameras and 50 LTE sites; establishing an internal secure communications network for the government; and establishing an electronic identification card system. CITCC is the contractor responsible for project implementation. In February 2019, Ambassador Zhu Liying visited the construction site and had a discussion with the head of the project team. It is unclear if the project is on track for its 2020 completion date.

Additional details

1. A report from the French Economic Ministry records the face value of the loan as EUR 141.8 million. 2. The French project title is Projet Mali Numerique 2020. The Chinese project title is 数字马里项目. 3. The World Bank’s Debtor Reporting System (DRS) does not record the Government of Mali as contracting any loans from official sector institutions in China in 2018. 4. On November 15, 2018, Malian members of parliament adopted a draft law authorizing ratification of the loan agreement. 5. One source indicates that the 817.4 km of fiber optic cable consists of the 420 km Mopti-Gao route, the 199 km Mopti-Koro-Bi route, and the 198 km Gao-Labezanga route. 6. According to the World Bank's Debtor Reporting System (DRS), the weighted average maturity of all official sector lending from Chinese creditors to government and government-guaranteed borrowing institutions in Mali was 19.4999 years in 2018. AidData estimates the maturity of the China Eximbank loan that supported the Mali Digital 2020 Project by using this figure. See https://www.dropbox.com/s/949n5rctiue6d7c/IDS_Average_grace_period_and_maturity_on_new_external_debt_commitments.xlsx?dl=0 7. According to the World Bank's Debtor Reporting System (DRS), the weighted average grace period of all official sector lending from Chinese creditors to government and government-guaranteed borrowing institutions in Mali was 6.9999 years in 2018. AidData estimates the grace period of the China Eximbank loan that supported the Mali Digital 2020 Project by using this figure. See https://www.dropbox.com/s/949n5rctiue6d7c/IDS_Average_grace_period_and_maturity_on_new_external_debt_commitments.xlsx?dl=0 8. According to the World Bank's Debtor Reporting System (DRS), the weighted average interest rate of all official sector lending from Chinese creditors to government and government-guaranteed borrowing institutions in Mali was 0% in 2018. AidData estimates the interest rate of the China Eximbank loan that supported the Mali Digital 2020 Project by using this figure. See https://www.dropbox.com/s/ab8qt4n6jijcbhd/IDS_Average%20interest%20on%20new%20external%20debt%20commitments.xlsx?dl=0

Number of official sources

9

Number of total sources

20