Geospatial Analysis of China’s Overseas Development Finance (CODF) Projects with Protected Areas in Africa

Global infrastructure development is booming given the rise in various bilateral and multilateral infrastructure investment initiatives, like the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the G7 Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment (PGII). These investments have covered various sectors such as transportation (road, rail, airports, ports) and energy (fossil fuels, renewables) that are expected to facilitate trade and connectivity between countries. The sub-Saharan Africa constitutes the majority of these development finance-based infrastructure projects (44 out of 149 participating BRI countries are in the sub-Saharan Africa). However, no previous study has explicitly focused on investigating the extent of the overlap between these projects and the protected areas. The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) lists the areas rich in native culture and resources like marine and terrestrial life, flora and fauna, and geologic structures. This study examines the spatial overlap of infratructure projects with protected areas in Africa, focusing on a critical 5-kilometer buffer that highlights potential direct environmental impacts. Countries such as Angola, Kenya, and Zambia show the highest counts of project intersections (mainly transport and power), while Sudan and Angola exhibit notably large overlap percentages, posing higher potential risks to protected areas. The analysis reveals that the majority (92%) of overlaps occur in nationally designated protected areas, indicating potential gaps in national-level governance and regulation. The findings offer crucial insights for policymakers and stakeholders (especially from countries like Angola, Kenya, and Nigeria) engaged in these infrastructure development and conservation efforts.