Africa Isn't Just China's 'continent of opportunity'

A new report claims China has cleared more than $3 billion of debt owed by African countries

The Center for Global Development says the headline figure is misleading.

It says China's debt relief is much smaller than claimed

And that it is mostly loans that were not going to be repaid anyway.

For more than a decade, China has been lending vast sums of money to African countries.

Beijing says this is part of its commitment to helping the continent develop.

But critics argue that China is saddling African countries with unsustainable levels of debt.

And that it is using this debt to gain political leverage over them.

A new report from the Center for Global Development claims that China has cleared more than $3 billion of debt owed by African countries.

The report says this is a significant step forward.

But it also warns that the headline figure is misleading.

The report says that much of the debt relief is for loans that were not going to be repaid anyway.

And that the total amount of debt owed by African countries to China has actually increased in recent years.

The Center for Global Development says that China needs to do more to help African countries manage their debt burden.

It says that China should provide more grants and concessional loans.

And that it should work with other creditors to coordinate debt relief efforts.