{"id":7561,"date":"2026-02-25T21:42:27","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T13:42:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ijaps.usm.my\/?page_id=7561"},"modified":"2026-02-25T21:54:35","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T13:54:35","slug":"a-comparative-analysis-of-the-belt-and-road-initiative-through-the-prism-of-asia-and-africa-evidence-from-coal-powered-electricity-in-indonesia-and-zimbabwe","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ijaps.usm.my\/?page_id=7561","title":{"rendered":"A Comparative Analysis of the Belt and Road Initiative Through the Prism of Asia and Africa: Evidence from Coal-Powered Electricity in Indonesia and Zimbabwe"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

ABSTRACT<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article examines the implementation of China\u2019s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in Asia and Africa through a comparative analysis of coal-powered electricity projects in Indonesia and Zimbabwe. It challenges the prevailing narrative that the BRI represents a mutually beneficial \u201cwin-win\u201d cooperation framework. Instead, the study argues that China employs polylateral strategies\u2014integrating commerce, security, and diplomacy\u2014to advance its geo-economic interests in recipient countries. These strategies are analysed through Michel Foucault\u2019s concept of governmentality. While polylateralism refers to China\u2019s use of overlapping channels of influence\u2014including state-owned enterprises, banks, private firms, and diplomatic institutions\u2014governmentality elucidates how these mechanisms collectively shape infrastructure priorities, normalise asymmetrical partnerships, and guide development trajectories through indirect governance. Using a qualitative approach and grounded in this dual framework, the study contends that BRI infrastructure functions less as an equitable partnership and more as a mechanism of indirect control. The findings reveal consistent patterns across both case studies: elite capture, environmental degradation, community displacement, and benefits disproportionately favouring Chinese stakeholders. Despite differing political and institutional contexts, Indonesia and Zimbabwe illustrate how BRI projects can reinforce structural dependency, exacerbate inequality, and undermine sustainable development. This article contributes to critical debates on China\u2019s evolving role in the Global South by interrogating the transformative potential of infrastructure diplomacy under the BRI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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ABSTRACT This article examines the implementation of China\u2019s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in Asia and Africa through a comparative analysis of coal-powered electricity projects in Indonesia and Zimbabwe. It challenges the prevailing narrative that the BRI represents a mutually beneficial \u201cwin-win\u201d cooperation framework. Instead, the study argues that China employs polylateral strategies\u2014integrating commerce, security, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":101011,"featured_media":0,"parent":7522,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"yoast_head":"\nA Comparative Analysis of the Belt and Road Initiative Through the Prism of Asia and Africa: Evidence from Coal-Powered Electricity in Indonesia and Zimbabwe | IJAPS<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ijaps.usm.my\/?page_id=7561\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" 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