While commercial lenders and multilaterals fret about rising indebtedness and poor rates of return, African leaders are again seeking refuge in infrastructure mega-schemes they believe will pull the continent towards Chinese levels of growth. President John Pembe Magufuli of Tanzania and his Ugandan counterpart, Yoweri Museveni, have launched an oil pipeline with an ambitious 2020 completion date, though details of the $3.5bn scheme’s financing remain elusive. The African Union Commission and partners continue to hype the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (Pida)’s transformative value, despite projects’ lack of real progress.