THE Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s (AIIB) Board of Governors has adopted resolutions approving applications from Kenya and Papua New Guinea to join the bank, bringing AIIB’s total approved membership to 86.

“We’re very happy to welcome Papua New Guinea and Kenya as prospective members of AIIB,” says AIIB vice president and corporate secretary Danny Alexander. “AIIB now has 86 approved members from six continents. This shows a strong commitment to promoting infrastructure development through rules-based multilateral cooperation with high standards of governance.”

The two prospective members will officially join AIIB once they complete the required domestic processes and deposit the first instalment of capital with the bank. The shares allocated to the new prospective members come from AIIB’s existing pool of unallocated shares.

At its launch in January 2016, there were 57 signatories to AIIB’s Articles of Agreement. In March, May, June and December 2017, the bank announced the approval of another 27 prospective members. AIIB expects to continue welcoming new members in the future.

Kenya's move to join the AIIB is a reflection of its strategy reduce its reliance on Western-led lending institutions, particularly on key infrastructure projects.

One of the most high-profile completed projects is the Mombasa–Nairobi Standard Guage Railway, linking the capital city to Kenya's biggest port.

The US$3.8 billion contract to fund the project was signed between the China Road and Bridge Corporation and the government of Kenya in May 2014, within the framework of the Belt & Road initiative.

The rail link features passenger trains with a speed of 120 kilometres per hour and freight trains designed to move at 80 kilometres per hour.

Photo: AIIB