China-Africa: These days in Africa, any Asian face is perceived as Chinese
China looks to Africa, Africa seems to like the attention
By KAVI CHONGKITTAVORN
THE NATION
Gabarone, Botswana
Published on October 21, 2008
THE first sign I saw after the plane touched down at Sereste Khama International Airport in Gabrone, Botswana was “Zhongguo Suidian” or “SinoHydro”, right at the end of the tarmac. For the next three days, in one of the richest countries on the African continent, I would encounter dozens of Chinese experts, businessmen and traders. And seven Chinese restaurants.
“Ni hao ma?” Kilaboga, a young security guard in front of a UK bank, greeted me in pu-tung-hua, thinking I was Chinese. We struck up a conversation after I told him that I came from Thailand.
“The Chinese people are not prejudiced against us, we feel good,” he said. His sentiment was shared by other Botswanans I met during my short stay. In conversations with local people, the impression of China is generally positive. They said that the Chinese are in the country to help build low-cost housing, schools, roads, hydro-electric plants and other power plants. Of course, they are also heavily involved in other things such as mining, trading and catering. China is also Asia’s largest diamond importer, each year bringing in gems from Africa worth about US$3 billion.
When I asked local people if they had any idea how many Chinese lived in the country, nobody seemed to know. A Chinese businessman told me there are at least 10,000 Chinese living in Botswana, which is about the same size as France or Kenya but with a population of only 1.8 million. Neighbouring South Africa has over 200,000 Chinese residents after Pretoria switched diplomatic recognition to Beijing in 1994.
In the 1950s and 60s, China’s foreign policy towards Africa was influenced heavily by ideology. Beijing supported the independence struggles in Africa, and economic assistance was given to several newly independent African countries as part of China’s foreign policy based on Mao Zedong’s “Theory of Three”. After the Cultural Revolution, Chinese assistance was cut back as domestic woes kept its revolutionary zeal at bay. But some of the Chinese technicians and their families stayed behind. As a result, several thousand Chinese have become residents, bridging the gap between China and Africa. Now, they are being joined by a new wave of migrants from China’s multinational companies and government agencies.
In Gabrone, the Chinese community is considered an economic driving force. There is a Chinese high school, numerous Chinese shops and seven Chinese restaurants that serve distinctive foods from Sichuan and Guangdong.
Although small- and medium-size Chinese companies ventured to Africa long before the new China came of age, they never made headlines. Another wave of Chinese business adventurers came after the 1997 economic crisis in Asia. At the time, Southeast Asia was no longer seen as a prime investment area for China, so they looked to the African continent.
Bonolo, a receptionist at the Gabrone Sun Hotel, greeted me with “Ni hao ma?” when I arrived at the desk. It was the second Chinese greeting I’d heard in succession. These days in Africa, any Asian face is perceived as Chinese. Bonolo said that local people like the Chinese residents here because they treat them as equals. But he had one complaint, which I found odd at first: that the Chinese community seldom used local banks. “They tend to bank their money at home,” said Bonolo. Other than that, he said, local people are quite happy for the Chinese to be here.
On the return flight to Johannesburg, I began thinking more about Bonolo’s complaint. I got an answer from a young Chinese manager sitting next to me. Huang Gai, from Beijing, worked for a Chinese multinational operating in Gabrone.
“Being Chinese, you stand out among the crowd, wherever you go. When you queue up at banks or in front of an ATM, people notice you easily,” Huang explained. “That can make you a target.”
If a Chinese visits local banks often, he or she could be followed by potential robbers because they are perceived as well to do.
“In the early days there were cases of robberies,” Huang said. “As such, local Chinese residents have developed their own secret savings system to avoid muggings.”
At weekends, Chinese residents often spend leisure time in one of the three five-star hotels in the capital, listening to music and dining. At the Sun Hotel, Botswanans come for Chinese food, which one young client called “the magic wok”.
At the Chinese food counters - open kitchens designed for clients to take part in the cooking process - diners can choose from a variety of vegetables and meats, which the cooks then stir fry for them with soy sauce, oyster sauce and chilli sauce. The most popular Chinese dishes are fried noodles with assorted vegetables and meat.
Elsewhere in Africa, China’s growing investment and development assistance have not yet created the kind of resentment or criticism that often is portrayed by the media in other parts of the world. Kwame Karibari, director of the Media Foundation West Africa, in Ghana, said that Africa has not been colonised by the Chinese, so there is no resentment.
“They come to make money. There are only a few problems related to small traders in Ghana,” he said, adding that traders sometimes got into brawls because of business competition and conflicts.
David Makali, director of the Media Institute Kenya, concurred that in Kenya, there is no ill-feeling towards China. But he said African journalists need to learn more about the role China is playing in Africa’s overall economic development.
Unlike the 1950s, when all the Chinese programmes in Africa were funded by the Chinese Communist Party, now China’s state enterprises and the private sector are at the frontline of Chinese involvement in Africa.
“African journalists need to know more about the nature and structure of these projects and analyse trends,” Makali said, referring to China’s investment in East Africa. He said that in the future, China will become a mainstream issue in African politics.
(nationmultimedia)