Do Africa's ports create a pathway to plunder?

An aerial view of Kenya's Lamu Port. [File, Standard]

Ports have long been integral to Africa's connectivity with the rest of the world.

Yet over the last 15 years, a new stage in maritime infrastructure planning and development has begun. Between 2004 and 2019, over $50 billion was spent on this infrastructure - roughly 13 times more than was spent between 1990 and 2004.