US President Joe Biden and other G7 leaders on Sunday unveiled a multi-billion-dollar rival to China’s decade-old Belt and Road Initiative that is heavy on promises but light on details.

The Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) aims to mobilise $600bn in public and private funds through 2027 to fund infrastructure projects in developing countries, namely in Africa. About a third, or $200bn, would be raised by the US.

Biden has championed a more collaborative approach than his predecessor Donald Trump, and has been mindful not to tell Africans that they had to choose between China and the US....