China has become one of Africa's largest development financiers, with over $180 billion in loans to African countries since 2000.While agricultural funding focuses on farm development, irrigation, and mechanization, there's minimal investment in critical areas like food processing and storage.Southern African nations like Zambia and Zimbabwe receive the most loans, followed by East and West Africa.

However, the study reveals that only 3% of Chinese agricultural loans go to storage and cold-chain infrastructure, with less than 2% for processing facilities.This gap limits Africa's ability to modernize agriculture, as storage, transport, and market systems are essential for transforming food systems.

The research highlights that Chinese investments prioritize practical projects over strategic sector development, leaving smallholder farmers disconnected from global supply chains.

To address this, greater investment in storage, processing, and market systems is needed, along with better coordination between African governments and international lenders to ensure long-term agricultural growth and food security.