China rejects claims it is contributing to Africa's debt crisis

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu rebuffed on Tuesday claims that China is adding to the debt burden of African countries by offering huge loans to them.

The AFP quoted Jiang as saying that "China's assistance or loans to the African countries is modest with no political strings attached." She stressed that the Chinese government's involvement is aimed at helping to reduce poverty on the continent.

Critics of China's involvement in Africa say that the loans will only worsen the debt crisis and that China is only interested in the continent's oil resources. Some non-governmental organizations have also argued that China is ignoring problems like human rights, environmental protection and corruption in the region.

Jiang, speaking the week after Shanghai hosted the annual meeting of the African Development Bank, also spoke of the need for developed countries to do even more to help reduce poverty in Africa. She said that it was crucial for the African countries to be freed from "the vicious cycle of debt."

Jiang underlined that the loans will mainly be used for infrastructure development projects in a fair and transparent manner. China's assistance to African countries aims to improve their self-development capabilities instead of imposing Chinese ideologies or development policies, she added.

Jiang stressed that local African governments should take care of internal affairs in the region, but that outside assistance would serve as support in their own efforts to achieve stability and development.