China’s Belt and Road Initiative Leads to Debt and Corruption: Experts

Sri Lankan road construction workers construction labourers works along a road in Colombo on August 5, 2018. - Sri Lanka's central bank on August 3 announced it had secured a $1 billion Chinese loan as the island, a key link in Beijing's ambitious Belt and Road initiative, develops closer relations with Asia's largest economy. Lakruwan Wanniarachchi/AFP via Getty Images

China pledged an eight-point infrastructure scheme as part of its next five-year Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) goal in a recent international forum in Beijing.

In the third BRI forum opening address on Oct. 18, Chinese leader Xi Jinping promised a $47.8 billion financing pledge from Chinese development banks, “small yet smart” projects that entail 100 joint laboratories, and 100,000 training opportunities for partner countries by 2030.