The real story of China in Africa

As I arrived before the dinner hour in the Eastern Industry Zone, many Huajian Ethiopian workers were playing ping-pong, basketball and soccer in the factory compound.

Huajian is one of some 20 Chinese companies operating in the Eastern Industry Zone. Other companies include auto, packaging, textile and garment, steel and cement factories.

The first industry zone in Ethiopia has been expanding, another 130,000 square-meters s being constructed to meet the growing demand in a country where power outage is more than a daily occurrence and lack of infrastructure is a big challenge.

Ethiopia, one of the world's poorest nations, faces enormous challenges in poverty reduction and development. And undoubtedly China's development experience in the last few decades has fueled the optimism of Chinese entrepreneurs about a promising future for Ethiopia. With 96 million people, Ethiopia is the second most populous country in Africa, and could be an important player in the global supply chain.

Like my pleasant surprise on the Ethiopian Airlines flight, I have also been amazed by how many Ethiopians, whether at ZTE or Huajian, speak Chinese, albeit at the very basic level. That is certainly a sign of friendliness.

Chinese companies are still mostly new to operating in this foreign land, and misunderstandings due to cultural differences do occur. However, there are not the tensions that Western news media like to play up.

The author is deputy editor of China Daily USA. chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com

(China Daily 08/08/2014 page8)