In an effort to speed up trade with Africa, China has implemented hybrid logistics links or multimodal rail-sea lines to bypass traditional cargo choke points.One such example is the Chengdu-Europe-Africa rail-sea transport line that was opened in October this year. This line moves freight from the city of Chengdu in southwestern China to Morocco via the German port of Hamburg. Another hybrid line is set to be opened shortly and will move Chinese apple juice concentrate from Gansu province to the Port of Qingdao from where it will go to Cape Town.According to the China Global South Project, the logistics links effectively allow China to bypass all the choke points currently experienced along traditional shipping routes, effectively speeding up their trade with the continent.At the recent 8th Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, both Africa and China committed to growing bilateral trade even more.China-Africa annual trade is expected to reach $300 billion by 2035.
