Originally Posted by
gnomey
I am not implying the roads can last for 10 years.
what I mean is in the next 10 years, more paved roads, new bridges may materialize
smart businessmen who has the foresight to invest in africa will also make sure that the country remains beholden to them - through toll payments, absence of technology transfer, etc. and I havent spoken about the political implications.
look at apple, why do some of their products fall apart or slow to a crawl after 3-5 years. if they build something to last forever, fewer people will be forced to buy newer generation of goods.
Comparing civil infrastructure to commercial products is a false equivalence.
Beyond that, I don't think anyone should be pinning their hopes on Chinese road building projects. They build the roads to give them more effective & efficient access to the commercial & natural resources where they have an interest. They aren't designed to be long term solutions, and Mozambique is in no state to maintain these roads. Creating more roads & bridges only increases the financial burden to the country. There are already numerous examples in other parts of Africa where Chinese built roads & bridges have fallen into disrepair, and are in worse condition than before they were built. Let's not pin our hopes on a temporary solution.