Private Chinese companies compete actively for construction contracts in Africa. When Chinese companies first entered the market, they tended to be large and state-owned (e.g., China Overseas Engineering Corporation, China Roads and Bridges Corporation, China Railway Construction Corporation, and Harbin Power Corporation). Now the number of private Chinese construction companies is growing rapidly, as are their size and capacity.
Competition between Chinese companies is fierce. While state-owned enterprises receive more assistance from the Chinese government in terms of access to African governments and information on market trends, the private construction companies seem to be more efficient in implementing projects (CFCS, 2006, pp.77).
Typically, state-owned companies arrive with their own workforce.23 A minority of these workers stay in Africa after the work is completed and become independent contractors.
Thus, there are a variety of private Chinese contractors and builders in the African market, some as small as single-person operations established by Chinese nationals residing in Africa. Some were originally private subcontractors for state-owned companies they had worked for in China, specializing in different areas of construction, like plumbing, electrical engineering, or air conditioning. There are no reliable figures on the number of Chinese now working in Africa. A recent study notes that the Chinese authorities identified 78,000 of them on the continent (ECOWAS–SWAS/OECD, 2006).
IMF Working Paper African Department What Drives China’s Growing Role in Africa?
Prepared by Jian-Ye Wang October 2007
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