Schiller Institute Special Report:
Extending the New Silk Road to West Asia (Middle East) and Africa:
A Vision of an Economic Renaissance,
Introduction:
Table of Contents:
Preface
Introduction
A New Global Paradigm 11
China’s Role in the Economic Renaissance of West Asia and Africa 14
What is Win-Win Philosophy? 16
The Age of Mega-Projects Is Back 21
Redefining ‘Sustainable Development’ 22
‘Helping’ or Empowering Africa 24
The African Union Aims High 25
Africa Must Leap Ahead, Not Crawl Forward! 28
Chapter 1: West Asia: The Silk Road’s Crossroads to the Mediterranean and Africa 29
Egypt: A Bridge between Asia, Europe and Africa 30
Chapter 2: The Silk Road Reaches Africa 33
China in Africa: Myths or Facts 36
Europe, not China, Is Engaged in Land Grabbing in Africa 37
Defining an African Future 40
Chapter 3: The Economic Science Behind the World LandBridge 41
What is Infrastructure, Really? 41
Economics: The Ultimate Science 41
Platforms: Artificial Environments 44
Energy Flux Density 45
Power and Energy 45
Promethean ‘Fire’ 46
Aspects of the ‘Synthetic Environment’48
Materials 48
Water 49
Transportation 50
Energy 53
Space 55
A Future Platform: Nuclear Fusion 56
Nuclear Power: Fission and Fusion 56
Benefits of Fusion 58
New, Unique Applications of Fusion 59
Conclusion 60
Chapter 4: Financing Regional and National Infrastructure 63
Money vs. Credit 63
Credit and Productivity 64
Invariance of Historical and Modern Examples 66
President Roosevelt’s RFC 68
A Southwest Asia/Africa Regional Infrastructure Bank 69
Cooperation with International Development Banks 70
Public-Private Partnerships Cannot Substitute 73
Appendix: Egypt: Internal financing of development 74
A National Reconstruction and Development Bank 74
Appendix: “LaRouche on Money vs. Credit” 75
Chapter 5: Demography and Development 77
Case Study: Egypt—Myth of Overpopulation 79
Moving Forward and Outward 80
Egypt Reclaims the Desert 81
The New Nile Valley 82
Chapter 6: Integration of West Asia with the New Silk Road 85
The Bridge Among Continents 85
Completing the Land-Bridge Westward 87
Proposed Corridors Integrating Arab States 90
A Common Enemy: The Desert 91
Attacking the Desert from the Fertile Crescent 91
Petrochemicals: Industry of the Future 99
Plastics 100
Appendix—Case Study: Syria’s Reconstruction Project Phoenix 103
Financing Reconstruction in a Nation Ruined by War? 105
Physical-Economic Development 106
Syria and the New Silk Road 106
Conclusion 108
Chapter 7: Africa — Transport Network Integration 111
Colonial Legacy 113
Dependency on Roads 114
Landlocked Nations 116
Turning a Crisis Into an Opportunity 118
A. The Nile Basin and East Africa 119
Creating a Powerful North-South Axis 119
East Africa’s Economic Corridors 125
B. Southern Africa 134
Roads, Rails and Ports in Southern Africa 134
The South African High-Speed Rail Project 135
Gautrain 137
When Will South Africa Convert to Standard Gauge?138
Africa’s North-South Corridor 138
Africa Tomorrow 142
C. West and Central Africa 142
Fast Track Development Perspective for West and Central Africa 142
Ports Connecting to the BRI 144
Development of West Africa 145
Development of Central Africa 147
Mechanized Agriculture: Africa Can Feed Itself and the Rest of the World 147
D. North Africa 147
Dreams and Setbacks 149
Highway Networks 149
Maghreb Railway Networks 151
Trans-Maghreb High-Speed Rail 152
Morocco Joins the BRI: Tanger-Med Port and Technopolis 154
Algeria Joins, Too156
Bridging the Gap Between Europe and Africa 157
Chapter 8: Africa — Water Resources Development 161
Managing the Water Cycle as a Cycle 163
Category 1: Management of Land Flow 165
Into the Future: How Africa Can Lead the World 169
Category 2: Weather Control 170
Category 3: Desalination of Ocean Water 174
Africa’s Water Future 175
Case study: The Nile Basin 175
The Linear Facts 176
Lost to Evaporation 177
Hydropower, Water Management, Agricultural Development 181
Chapter 9: To Power Africa, Go Nuclear! 185
Energy Requirements 185
An African Visionary: Diop 189
Chapter 10: Africa — Food Security: Realizing Africa’s Vast Agricultural Potential 193
Land and Yield 195
China’s Contributions 197
Lake Chad Basin 198
Sudan 200
Commitment to Transformation 200
Chapter 11: Africa in Space 203
New Space Nations 204
Space as a Driver for Development 205
A World-Class Science Project
206 Case Study — South Africa: Looking to the Heavens to Develop the Continent 208 Scientific Orientation 209
Imagination and Wonder 211
Space Technology Can Support Africa’s Development Goals 212
Working with China and the BRICS 213
Chapter 12: Conclusions and Recommendations 215
The Political and Economic Context 215
Some Necessary Axiomatic Shifts 217
Recommendation: Understanding Physical Economics 218
Recommendation: Financing Infrastructure 219
Recommendation: Science and Technology 220
Recommendation: Transport 220
Recommendation: Power 221
Recommendation: Water 221
Recommendation: Agriculture 222
Chapter 13: Selection of Proposed Mega Projects in Africa 225
Pan-African High-Speed Rail Network 225
Regional and Continental Corridors 227
New Suez Canal and Industrial Zone 229
Transaqua: The Centerpiece of Africa’s Development 231
Grand Inga Dam Project 237
South African Nuclear Program 239
Sicily–Tunis Connector — TUNeIT 242
Gibraltar Euro-African Tunnel 245