RECONFIGURING ASIA-AFRICA CONNECTIVITY: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF CHINA’S BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE AND INDIA’S SAGAR STRATEGY

Abstract

The transformation of global geopolitics and the rise of multi-vector regionalism have brought Asia Africa connectivity to the centre of strategic competition and cooperation. This paper offers a comparative analysis of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and India’s SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) strategy, assessing how each framework remaps maritime and continental linkages between Asia and Africa. Drawing on international political economy and regionalism literatures, the study conceptualizes connectivity as both an economic public good and a site of geostrategic contestation. Using a qualitative comparative case-study design, it synthesizes official documents, policy statements, project data, and peer-reviewed literature to evaluate the institutional architectures, financing modalities, and normative claims underpinning BRI and SAGAR, and their downstream impacts on African coastal states. Findings indicate that the BRI characterized by large state-led finance, integrated land-sea corridors, and deep infrastructure investments offers scale and speed but also exposes recipient states to debt and governance risks. By contrast, SAGAR foregrounds maritime security, capacity building, and ‘soft’ connectivity through localized projects and multilateral maritime cooperation; it offers lower financial scale but higher political acceptability in some African littoral states. The comparative analysis reveals complementarities as well as friction: where BRI’s material depth could connect continental corridors, SAGAR’s maritime diplomacy can facilitate port governance and coastal resilience. The paper concludes with policy recommendations for African states, India, and China to pursue interoperability, debt-sensitive financing, and inclusive governance mechanisms that reconcile scale with sustainability