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Nicaragua strolls back cross-country canal concession to Chinese financier

Nicaragua's congress, managed by President Daniel Ortega, on Wednesday reversed a. law which had given a littleknown Chinese financier a concession. of up to 100 years to develop and operate a canal in between the. Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

The law, passed in 2012 with the Ortega government's. support, was promoted at the time as a project which would raise. the Central American country out of poverty.

The canal was initially prepared to have been developed by 2019,. Building never began as Chinese entrepreneur Wang Jing,. who headed the job, saw his net worth collapse when China's. stock exchange crashed.

Wang's wealth peaked at $6.9 billion in 2015, but moved to. $ 1.9 billion the following year, then fell under $1 billion in. 2019, according to Forbes' Rich List.

The canal job, with an approximated expense of some $50. billion, likewise dealt with strong opposition from farmers and. environmentalists.

It's a shame that Ortega understands his own failure a years. later, after making arrangements to seize land from peasant. farmers, said Medardo Mairena, the leader of a canal opposition. group, who remains in exile in the United States.

Ortega sent the proposed repeal to congress early Wednesday. and it was almost all approved.

Nicaragua's canal had been pitched as a competitior to the. close by Panama Canal, which itself has seen crossings restricted in. current months due to dry spell that reduced water levels on the. 50-mile (80-km) waterway.

While stripping the concession from the Chinese financier,. the repeal leaves in location a law calling for the canal to be. developed, although it's unclear who would fund such a project.