Chinese Loans to Africa Database – Data Download
The Chinese Loans to Africa (CLA) Database is an interactive data project tracking loan commitments from Chinese development finance institutions, commercial banks, government entities and companies to African governments, state-owned enterprises and regional institutions.
The CLA Database was started by the China Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS-CARI). As of March 29, 2021, the CLA Database is managed by the Boston University Global Development Policy (GDP) Center. The GDP Center is a University-wide center in partnership with the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. The GDP Center’s mission is to advance policy-oriented research for financial stability, human well-being and environmental sustainability.
Starting in 2007, researchers have collected, cleaned and analyzed publicly available data to create a database on Chinese lending to Africa. The data sources include official government documents, contractor websites, fieldwork, interviews and media sources.
The CLA Database estimates that from 2000-2023, 41 Chinese lenders signed 1,306 loan commitments amounting to $182.28 billion with 49 African governments and seven regional institutions.
CLA Database loan amounts are not equivalent to African government debt, as the database tracks commitments, and not disbursement, repayments or defaults.
Resources:
For information on the database methodology, refer to:
- For the years 2020 and onwards, the GDP Center Database Methodology Guidebook
- or the years 2000-2019, the SAIS-CARI Methodology Guidebook
Suggested citation:
Boston University Global Development Policy Center. 2024. Chinese Loans to Africa Database. Retrieved from http://bu.edu/gdp/chinese-loans-to-africa-database.
Contact:
- For data inquiries, please contact Diego Morro, dm3760@bu.edu.
- For media inquiries, please contact Maureen Heydt, mheydt@bu.edu.