Chinese Shops and the Formation of a Chinese Expatriate Community in Namibia

Abstract

The first Chinese migrants came to the Namibian border boom town Oshikango in 1999. Today, there are over 100 shops which sell Chinese goods to Angolan traders in that town of only around 10,000 inhabitants. This article describes their way of doing business and the economic interactions between migrants and the host society. By reacting to the host society's reaction to them, Chinese shopkeepers in Namibia are gradually developing into a migrant society with a distinct social structure. In an increasingly hostile political climate, Chinese entrepreneurs are faced with stronger regulation. This has not had the intended effect of pushing shopkeepers into manufacturing. Instead, it has sharpened social stratification among migrants, with traders better connected to Namibian authorities using their connections as an additional resource. In an optimistic view, the alliance between successful Chinese and Namibian actors could be the germ for a spill-over of Chinese entrepreneurial success; in a pessimistic view, it will create additional rents for some Namibians and give migrants the leverage to evade regulations.

Beyond the reach of the whip: Chinese Investment in Papua New Guinea

“…Around 90 per cent of the -new Chinese‖ merchants hail from the same town in Fujian province, Fuqing, which is renowned as a source of entrepreneurial migrants, both legal and illegal (Liu-Farrer 2009). As has been noted in Africa (Dobler 2009), the Chinese state has only a limited influence on these entrepreneurs' lives, mostly through its embassy in Port Moresby. The embassy assists with setting up friendship associations and mutual aid groups, but it has little capacity or inclination to intervene to protect its citizens-a policy that Chinese expatriates, in turn, have come to resent.…”

Unravelling the ‘Fongkong’ Phenomenon in Botswana Through Analyzing the Relationship Among Mass Media, Governmental Activities and Local Voices

“…To date, a vast body of literature has debated the increasing number of Chinese merchants in African countries and the challenges this raises (Dobler, 2009;Haugen & Carling, 2005;Kalusopa, 2009;Sautman & Yan, 2009); however, few have provided an insight into Chinese people's daily interaction with locals or the voices of local people concerning Chinese in their societies (Codrin, 2014;Giese, 2013). Most of the relating researches are based on governmental document and media reports whilst lacking a comprehensive understanding of the area through fieldwork (Cissé, 2014;Giese, 2013).…”

Chinese Aid in the South Pacific: Linked to Resources?

“…In addition, the plethora of Chinese actors -the Government, large state-owned enterprises, provincial-level companies, small-scale entrepreneurs, and migrants (legal and illegal) -makes controlling its state-driven agenda increasingly challenging for the Chinese Government. These issues have been discussed particularly in the African context (for example, Gill and Reilly, 2007;Dobler, 2009) and they generally apply to the South Pacific region as well. Alden and Hughes (2009, p. 564) are correct in arguing that "when analysing a relationship like that between China and Africa, the tendency to take the state as the main unit of analysis can rightly be criticised for neglecting that 'China' is anything but a unitary actor".…”