Belt and Road Initiative and its Implications for MENA

On October 3, 2018, TRT World Research Centre held a roundtable meeting on China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This session aimed to discuss the opportunities and challenges of China’s Belt and Road Initiative for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The BRI is a comprehensive connectivity and cooperation plan that spans three continents, representing 60% of the world’s population (across 65 countries) and 30% of global GDP. It is one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects in modern history and has the potential to reconfigure and optimise global trade routes. The initiative aims to deepen and expand links between Asia, the MENA Region, Europe, and Africa by recreating the ancient Silk Road trade routes through both land (the Belt) and sea (the Road).