Students experience the inspirational lessons of progress
Editor’s note: Two African PhD students at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing believe that the achievements of China-Africa cooperation are hugely significant in their countries, and enhanced ties will bring even greater benefits. These are their stories:
Idris Salim Dokota from Kenya turned down an offer to study in Europe and decided to learn the secrets of China’s development path and, more important, what the future holds.
After spending about four years studying in the university, the 33-year-old said he believes he had figured out 40 percent of the secret.
He hoped that by the time he completed his PhD in international economics and trade, in four more years, he will have learned more about China’s economic growth.
“I’d heard a lot about China’s fast economic growth in Kenya before I set foot in the country. For me, that’s not enough. I want to see the practical side of the story of China’s economic growth, especially how it got started,” said Dokota.
China was the fourth country to open its embassy in the capital, Nairobi, after Kenya became independent in 1963, Dokota said. China is the largest foreign direct investment source for Kenya. In addition, Kenya’s trade with China has been on the rise in recent years. Between 2011 and 2015, the average growth of exports from China to Kenya was 27 percent, according to Dokota’s research on China-Kenya economic ties. “The figures speak louder than words,” he said.
Chinese companies have built transportation, communication and electricity infrastructure in Kenya. The Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway, completed in June last year, was the biggest infrastructure project in Kenya since independence, Dokota said. “Trust me, so many lives have been transformed because of those projects.
“Our relationship will lead to a position where Africa will stand on its own and will be on par with other partners on the global stage to compete in the market,” he said.
As a planning officer for Kenya’s Ministry of Sports, Culture and the Arts, Dokota also noticed an obvious increase in the number of Chinese tourists going to Kenya in recent years.
“People can feel that the ties between China and Kenya have become closer at government, company and people levels,” he said.
There is still room for improvement, especially in letting the Chinese public and companies learn more about the continent, Dokota added.
“The Chinese people tend to associate Africa with disease, unrest and poverty. They need to be shown more information on Africa. What’s more, Chinese companies need to learn more about local culture so they can better cooperate with the local people.” Dokota, who is also the president of the Kenyan student union in Beijing, said the number of African students at UIBE has increased rapidly.
Woldehawariat Miheret Debebe
Woldehawariat Miheret Debebe, an Ethiopian engineer as well as a PhD student in China, said China is a model from which Africa can learn to overcome poverty, benefit people and narrow the gap between the poor and rich.
He also expected more win-win cooperation in the future.
“The development, culture and tradition of China, its key role in the global economy and its growing academic excellence are some of the main reasons,” he said in explaining his decision to pursue his doctoral degree at UIBE.
“China’s role in Africa is exemplary,” he said. “China’s engagement in the past decade in Ethiopia was huge in infrastructure, transport, rail and manufacturing. These are key economic factors which determine development.”
On Oct 5, 2016, a 759-kilometer railway began operation, connecting landlocked Ethiopia with Djibouti and thus with the maritime trade routes of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway was built with the help of China under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. Debebe praised Chinese companies’ growing sense of social responsibility.
“China’s investment is becoming more and more socially responsible, supporting local communities, education, health, creating jobs and protecting the environment,” he said, adding that Chinese companies have been constantly creating jobs for local people.
“About 40 to 50 percent of the management positions are taken by local professionals.” For example, Huajian, a Chinese shoemaker that makes products for brands like Guess and Calvin Klein, has already provided jobs to more than 8,000 Ethiopians with its two local factories, according to an earlier report in China Daily.
Debebe said the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway is also a major contribution to the environment because it uses electricity instead of fossil fuels.
According to Ethiopia’s Ministry of Trade, the bilateral trade volume between China and Ethiopia reached $5.4 billion in 2016. Meanwhile, Ethiopia’s exports of goods to China amounted to $240 million in 2017. It is the secondlargest export destination of Ethiopia.
“The fastest growth in African investment is leading to Ethiopia,’’ he said. “Now, especially, the public sector and private sector investments are growing, which is very important. And I hope this will continue. I’m sure that the partnership will continue in this direction with more capital injection, foreign direct investment and private sector involvement, as well as more benefits for both sides.”
Studying in China was not the starting point for Debebe’s ties with the country. It has been 20 years since his first visit to Beijing.
“There were not many buildings and big malls at that time,” he said. “So you could imagine this is what we could learn from China.”
Debebe now speaks some Chinese and writes basic Chinese characters after living in the country for three years.
“We (China and Ethiopia) have many common factors, such as family values and culture,” he said. “And some of our food, spicy food, is like Sichuan cuisine.”
China’s engagement in the past decade in Ethiopia was huge in infrastructure, transport, rail and manufacturing. These are key economic factors which determine development.” Woldehawariat Miheret Debebe, an Ethiopian engineer as well as a PhD student in China