China’s Belt and Road Initiative will play a key role in the reconstruction of the country following years of war. On 2 February, UK-based Middle East Eye reported that in 2021 Iraq received more than $10.5 billion in investment under China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), making it the largest beneficiary in West Asia.
The majority of the investments are in energy related projects, such as the $5 billion Al-Khairat heavy oil power plant in Karbala Province, and a natural gas project that will be undertaken by Chinese state-owned energy giant Sinopec in the Mansuriya gas field near the border with Iran.
Iraq is currently the the largest source of oil for the Chinese market.
A sizeable chunk of the investment will be channeled towards the developing of green energy projects in various parts of the country. The two countries are also working together on the construction of an international airport in Nasiriyah and one thousand schools across the country. Baghdad will provide Beijing with oil products in exchange for the schools.
The report, which was compiled using data provided by the Green Finance & Development Center at Fudan University in Shanghai, shows that during the same period Iraq emerged as the third largest partner for Chinese energy products, only surpassed by Russia and Pakistan.
The report also indicates that China’s total investment in West Asia under the BRI has significantly increased between 2020 and 2021. The increase was mostly driven by investments in the construction sector, which rose by 360 percent during the period under review.
BRI was launched by the government of China in 2013 with the aim of developing infrastructure in dozens of foreign countries in order to increase connectivity and enhance global trade links.
The official outline of the initiative says it’s goal is to “promote the connectivity of Asian, European and African continents and their adjacent seas, establish and strengthen partnerships among the countries along the Belt and Road, set up all-dimensional, multi-tiered and composite connectivity networks, and realize diversified, independent, balanced and sustainable development in these countries.”
