F REIGN TRADE - 中国国际贸易促进委员会

Africa
New Developments Pull
China and Africa Closer
By Alice Yang
Africa in Chinese eyes
Africa, a land full of wonders, gives
a lot of possibility beyond your imagination.
“Africa isn’t as scary as people
think. Since Africa is so vast that the
living environment varies from region to
region. Some areas are very comfortable
to stay in, neither too cold nor too hot.
You may think Africa is very hot as it
is in the tropical zone, but the heaviest
snow I’ve ever seen in my life is in the
mountain areas of Tunisia of North Africa,”
said Dawn Zhang, a senior officer
from China Road & Bridge Corporation
(CRBC), who has visited and stayed
in nearly 10 countries in Africa.
CRBC, as the first Chinese companies
in Africa since 1979, now conducts
business in over 20 countries there,
such as Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Kenya,
and Rwanda. “We have about 70 to
80 on-going projects in Africa, accounting
for two-thirds of the total business
volume of the whole company. Doing
business with Africa has to take bigger
risk and tougher condition compared
with other regions; as a result, investment
there will receive higher return,”
said Zhang.
In Zhang’s memory, in the 1980s,
Africa enjoyed higher development levels
than China. “My first time to shop in
a supermarket was in Burundi in 1982;
my first time to pass by an expressway
was in Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast called
at that time). In these so-called poor
countries, you can see more cars on
streets than in Beijing at that time.”
Africa’s development mode is
highly influenced by western countries.
The land is the whites’ paradise in
Zhang’s eyes. In the city life of Africa,
there is hardly any language barrier;
also living habits, consumption patterns
and social institutions all follow
the western style. “When you turn
on the TV, you’ll watch the latest TV
programs from France, America and
Britain. When you relax in the bars or
dancing hall, you’ll hear the most popular
hits of western music. It’s very easy
for the whites to have a comfortable life
in Africa: they are always on the top of
the rich class here, easy to have villas
to live in with servants and gardeners.”
Zhang said.
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