China’s technology story has invaluable lessons for Africa
By Timothy Karikari and Ohene Opoku Agyemang |
chinawatch.cn |
Updated: 2019-07-15 15:46
The rise of China to the status of a giant economy and the world hub for industrialization is a success story that needs to be told and retold. The cliché “Chinese example” is often used by some leaders of developing countries in expressing hopes for development.
The appropriate, reliable and high technology is acknowledged as catalyst for the acceleration of China’s economic and infrastructural development. The focus of China’s economic development and technological advancement with the incorporation of Artificial Intelligence, 5G and supersonic innovation skills places China within the global spectrum as a force to reckon with. The pride and joy of all these fast and efficient Chinese technologies is its policy support from the state.
The ripple effect of this support is the impact that it has had on China’s economic transformation. And the evidence of advancement in technology and transformation of the global economic order is the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping. The goal and policy direction of BRI supports a free market and free trade policy within the global economic system.
China’s economic and global trade is inseparable from the systematic and progressive development of its technology. And advanced economies and emerging ones alike do follow a path of in-depth science and technology and therefore it is not surprising to see many African countries investing heavily in technology and its related infrastructure.
This serves as a lesson for African states as Africa is home to the world’s youngest population with 60 percent of Africans being under the age of 25.
So, what does this age statistic mean? It shows a booming market for technology and development. And aside from population, other events and indices such as the growing demand for industrialization puts Africa at the same point as China when the latter was beginning its economic transformation agenda in the 1970s.
On July 7, 2019, the African Continental Free Trade Agreement was officially implemented and became the world’s largest free trade area since the creation of the World Trade Organization.
And among other things, it will create a single continental market for goods and services and provide value for investors because if implemented successfully, accessing Africa’s 1.2 billion consumer market should be a smooth ride and serve as a catalyst for foreign direct investments. Africa needs technological support to realize the gains of AfCFTA and other initiatives and it is therefore heartening to see private Chinese firms taking up the initiative to invest on the continent.
It was also therefore not surprising that the African Union signed a three-year memorandum of understanding with Chinese tech giant Huawei to strengthen sectors including the Internet of Things, cloud computing, broadband, the rollout 5G networks and AI. This is a confirmation of Africa’s need for Chinese technology irrespective of current sanctions from the world’s largest economy; the United States.
From smart phones, to smart cities, Chinese involvement will continue to dominate positively in Africa. And Chinese mobile phone makers have been smart to tailor their products for the African market with features such as long battery life to address Africa’s unstable power supply in certain areas.
China’s Transsion, the maker of Techno and Infinix phones, and Huawei control substantial percentages of Africa’s mobile phone market with 34.3 percent and 9.9 percent, respectively.
Transsion has a factory in Ethiopia for assembling and testing its phones in addition to research and development centres in Nigeria and Kenya. And aside from the creation of jobs through technology, their physical presence on the continent can facilitate the transfer of technology and learning.
On its part, Huawei has partnered with African governments to build much of the continent’s telecommunications, offering quality but affordable alternatives.
Meanwhile, in aiding African retailers tap into China’s large consumer market, China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba launched its Electronic World Trade Platform in Rwanda in 2018 to promote cross-border trade between Africa and China. But beyond promoting ecommerce between China and Africa, we believe that, this initiative can be the bedrock of an intra-country e-commerce system boosting trade between African countries especially with Africa’s free trade area policy taking shape.
The broadcast media is also not left out of this equation as we see Chinese electronics and media company StarTimes playing an active role in the switch from analogue to digital transmission on the African continent.
These examples and many more are evidence of the Chinese contribution to global technological development.
As developing countries are entreated to focus on technology and learning transfer as a means to becoming independent and controlling their technological infrastructure, it is incumbent on Chinese technology companies working with Africa to also exhibit good faith by providing the right training required by their hosts with no holdbacks and withholding of secrets.
Developing higher technology and placing it within the global economic integration has enormous prospects and challenges. And it positions China within the purview of global economic and technological forces.
The prospects of this development is the competitive advantage and global economic edge that China wields over emerging and already developed economies. And this will strengthen China’s goal of promoting equitable and efficient global trade.
In conclusion, the benefits of technological development are priceless and it is therefore incumbent on developing economies to capitalize on their strong partnership with China, and innovate with China’s experience and success story.
The Chinese technological transformation and contribution to global development within this time span is unmatched; a success achieved in one generation and indeed a miracle.
Timothy Karikari is a PhD candidate at the University of International Business and Economics, based in Beijing. Ohene Opoku Agyemang is a PhD candidate at Jinan University, based in Guangdong.
The authors contributed this article to China Watch exclusively. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of China Watch.
All rights reserved. Copying or sharing of any content for other than personal use is prohibited without prior written permission.
The rise of China to the status of a giant economy and the world hub for industrialization is a success story that needs to be told and retold. The cliché “Chinese example” is often used by some leaders of developing countries in expressing hopes for development.
The appropriate, reliable and high technology is acknowledged as catalyst for the acceleration of China’s economic and infrastructural development. The focus of China’s economic development and technological advancement with the incorporation of Artificial Intelligence, 5G and supersonic innovation skills places China within the global spectrum as a force to reckon with. The pride and joy of all these fast and efficient Chinese technologies is its policy support from the state.
The ripple effect of this support is the impact that it has had on China’s economic transformation. And the evidence of advancement in technology and transformation of the global economic order is the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping. The goal and policy direction of BRI supports a free market and free trade policy within the global economic system.
China’s economic and global trade is inseparable from the systematic and progressive development of its technology. And advanced economies and emerging ones alike do follow a path of in-depth science and technology and therefore it is not surprising to see many African countries investing heavily in technology and its related infrastructure.
This serves as a lesson for African states as Africa is home to the world’s youngest population with 60 percent of Africans being under the age of 25.
So, what does this age statistic mean? It shows a booming market for technology and development. And aside from population, other events and indices such as the growing demand for industrialization puts Africa at the same point as China when the latter was beginning its economic transformation agenda in the 1970s.
On July 7, 2019, the African Continental Free Trade Agreement was officially implemented and became the world’s largest free trade area since the creation of the World Trade Organization.
And among other things, it will create a single continental market for goods and services and provide value for investors because if implemented successfully, accessing Africa’s 1.2 billion consumer market should be a smooth ride and serve as a catalyst for foreign direct investments. Africa needs technological support to realize the gains of AfCFTA and other initiatives and it is therefore heartening to see private Chinese firms taking up the initiative to invest on the continent.
It was also therefore not surprising that the African Union signed a three-year memorandum of understanding with Chinese tech giant Huawei to strengthen sectors including the Internet of Things, cloud computing, broadband, the rollout 5G networks and AI. This is a confirmation of Africa’s need for Chinese technology irrespective of current sanctions from the world’s largest economy; the United States.
From smart phones, to smart cities, Chinese involvement will continue to dominate positively in Africa. And Chinese mobile phone makers have been smart to tailor their products for the African market with features such as long battery life to address Africa’s unstable power supply in certain areas.
China’s Transsion, the maker of Techno and Infinix phones, and Huawei control substantial percentages of Africa’s mobile phone market with 34.3 percent and 9.9 percent, respectively.
Transsion has a factory in Ethiopia for assembling and testing its phones in addition to research and development centres in Nigeria and Kenya. And aside from the creation of jobs through technology, their physical presence on the continent can facilitate the transfer of technology and learning.
On its part, Huawei has partnered with African governments to build much of the continent’s telecommunications, offering quality but affordable alternatives.
Meanwhile, in aiding African retailers tap into China’s large consumer market, China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba launched its Electronic World Trade Platform in Rwanda in 2018 to promote cross-border trade between Africa and China. But beyond promoting ecommerce between China and Africa, we believe that, this initiative can be the bedrock of an intra-country e-commerce system boosting trade between African countries especially with Africa’s free trade area policy taking shape.
The broadcast media is also not left out of this equation as we see Chinese electronics and media company StarTimes playing an active role in the switch from analogue to digital transmission on the African continent.
These examples and many more are evidence of the Chinese contribution to global technological development.
As developing countries are entreated to focus on technology and learning transfer as a means to becoming independent and controlling their technological infrastructure, it is incumbent on Chinese technology companies working with Africa to also exhibit good faith by providing the right training required by their hosts with no holdbacks and withholding of secrets.
Developing higher technology and placing it within the global economic integration has enormous prospects and challenges. And it positions China within the purview of global economic and technological forces.
The prospects of this development is the competitive advantage and global economic edge that China wields over emerging and already developed economies. And this will strengthen China’s goal of promoting equitable and efficient global trade.
In conclusion, the benefits of technological development are priceless and it is therefore incumbent on developing economies to capitalize on their strong partnership with China, and innovate with China’s experience and success story.
The Chinese technological transformation and contribution to global development within this time span is unmatched; a success achieved in one generation and indeed a miracle.
Timothy Karikari is a PhD candidate at the University of International Business and Economics, based in Beijing. Ohene Opoku Agyemang is a PhD candidate at Jinan University, based in Guangdong.
The authors contributed this article to China Watch exclusively. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of China Watch.
All rights reserved. Copying or sharing of any content for other than personal use is prohibited without prior written permission.
