![]() As a result, some analysts of China-Africa relations argue, or at least imply, that China does things as it wishes in Africa and that African countries have little agency in shaping how Chinese governmental and commercial players operate in their countries. Research on China’s engagement abroad and Chinese firms’ business operations in foreign countries often argues that Chinese organizations are not keen to adapt to local contexts. His current research looks at corporate partnerships in emerging countries, particularly Sino-African business relations. He specializes in international joint ventures and cooperation with countries in the Global South. To deepen the impact of such efforts, they should also encourage Chinese organizations active in West Africa, and across the continent in general, to embrace the use of local languages, especially for conducting business, and to train more Chinese expatriates to use African managerial philosophies that have proven to respect local values while being effective in African markets.Ībdoulkadre Ado is an associate professor of international business and global management at University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management. It would be beneficial for African governments, businesses, and corporate managers to explore further ways to incentivize Chinese government decisionmakers and Chinese businesses to use joint ventures more often as the vehicle for their investments in Africa. In doing so, Chinese organizations have responded to some of the demands of their African partners in local, state, and central government posts. Chinese firms are also complementing these growing business arrangements with the use of local languages, social media outreach, and other forms of local engagement with West Africans. This has been especially true in three key economic sectors: free trade zone promotion and related services, transportation and aviation, and oil and gas. Investing in joint ventures has enabled Chinese cultural adaptation by emphasizing training programs in languages commonly spoken in West Africa, embracing local management styles, and assimilating some local practices. Joint ventures have enabled Chinese companies to cultivate a presence in three West African countries-Ghana, Niger, and Nigeria. ![]() Vice President for Studies, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Summary These could enable local players to better channel Chinese energies to support their societies and economies provide lessons for Western engagement around the world, especially in developing countries help China’s own policy community learn from the diversity of Chinese experience and potentially reduce frictions. Ultimately, the project aims to significantly broaden understanding and debate about China’s role in the world and to generate innovative policy ideas. ![]() Through a mix of research and strategic convening, this project explores these complex dynamics, including the ways Chinese firms are adapting to local labor laws in Latin America, Chinese banks and funds are exploring traditional Islamic financial and credit products in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and Chinese actors are helping local workers upgrade their skills in Central Asia. These adaptive Chinese strategies that accommodate and work within local realities are mostly ignored by Western policymakers in particular. With a generous multiyear grant from the Ford Foundation, Carnegie has launched an innovative body of research on Chinese engagement strategies in seven regions of the world-Africa, Central Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa, the Pacific, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. But Chinese players also extend their influence by working through local actors and institutions while adapting and assimilating local and traditional forms, norms, and practices. ![]() Many argue that China exports its developmental model and imposes it on other countries. China has become a global power, but there is too little debate about how this has happened and what it means. ![]()
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