Despite Slowing Economy, Beijing Continues Pumping Aid Into the Solomons, Kiribati

China's ambassador to the Solomon Islands Li Ming (R), and Solomons Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare are cutting a ribbon during the opening ceremony of a China-funded national stadium complex in Honiara on April 22, 2022. Mavis Podokolo/AFP via Getty Images

Beijing is pumping more money into new developments in the Solomon Islands and Kiribati as “COVID-Zero” policies pummel the Chinese economy.

While Chinese aid flows to the overall Pacific region declined from 2016 to 2021, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has upped its investment in the Solomon Islands and Kiribati, which switched allegiances from Taiwan to Beijing in 2019, according to Lowy Institute’s latest Pacific Aid Map.