Analyzing the Rationality of Ethiopia in Dealing with China’s Support in Infrastructure Development

Abstract

This article analyzes the rationality of Ethiopia in cooperating with China in restoring the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway project using rational choice theory in foreign policy making. Despite having several alternative ports and other parties to support the project, Ethiopia has chosen the fund from China to support its railway project. The similarity between China and Ethiopia regarding political values is one of the factors in choosing China to work with. The Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) seems to be unapproachable by Western political values that are influenced by the internal condition of the state and tend to emphasize democracy. Therefore, it tends to work with China. Other than that, depending on Djibouti’s port as the most viable seaport in the region to access the sea as a landlocked country has driven Ethiopia to restore the railway as quickly as possible. By considering the Chinese loan system, which did not have many qualifications to lend money, Ethiopia could quickly restore the railway and not miss out on the opportunity to grow its trade through developing its infrastructure. Keywords: African infrastructure development, China’s loan, China in Africa, rational choice