What the COVID-19 Pandemic May Mean for China's Belt and Road Initiative

The coronavirus disease 2019 is experienced almost in every part of the world. In China, it has not only led to the loss of lives, but it’s also weighing on the country’s economic status. The pandemic has revealed the level of the weakness of the Xi Jinping Belt and Road initiative (BRI). After the government has attempted to sweep early news under carpet, the pandemic broke beyond imagination. Such an outbreak led to a series of measures from the Chinese government. From halted international travel, quarantined cities to lockdowns across the nation, millions of people were unable to complete their daily activities.

Since BRI heavily relies on Chinese labor and supplies, the project is heavily facing a huge setback. The halt in operations sent shockwaves to both the government and citizens of China. Not only is it causing Chinese many days of unproductiveness, it’s also causing the government of China its reputation. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, Cambodia’s Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone, as well as project Indonesia, Myanmar, and Malaysia ceased since the period the Epidemic became significant.

Most of the disruptions have been due to restrictions on international travel. For instance, China repatriated citizens working in Iran due to COVID-19.  That intensifies the grinding of the BRI project to halt. Likewise, over 130 countries around the world have restricted Chinese citizens from entering their country. Currently, the Chinese government is lobbying with BRI countries to ease those travel restrictions posed on their citizen. That’s because the inability of Chinese workers overseas to complete their projects can cause partial or complete abandonment of the project.

It’s worthy to note that most BRI projects even rely on China’s manufacturing supply chains. Since there is low to no reliance on local materials and supplies in BRI nations, the number of materials available for the project is minimal. Good flowing out of China has already been restricted. So, it’s nearly impossible for supplies to be in abundance.

Though all measures to curb COVID-19 are great, but its necessary government keeps working on the best way to help everyone carry out their daily activities safely. Adequate stores of protective gear for workers should be raised. Overall, workers should be released from quarantines and supplies of raw materials should resume as quickly as possible.