Opinion An arena called Africa
In Lesotho,I found India and China fighting a familiar battle for resources on unfamiliar turf
“Time is money” is a phrase that has perhaps never been more pertinent to the African continent than it is today. The race for Africas resources is underway,and some of the contenders,like India and China,are finding themselves engaged in a familiar battle on unfamiliar territory. While spectators and stakeholders around the world follow the race,the reaction of Africas own people to this aggressive invasion has not garnered nearly as much public attention as it deserves.
I spent a year in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho,a tiny country situated inside South Africa,teaching Business Education at a high school for economically disadvantaged girls in a tiny village several hours from the capital city,Maseru.
Once they understood the meaning of terms like competition and pricing,my students had no problems applying the definitions to their lives. Who sells papa (maize meal) around our village? I would ask,and class would reply,the Chinese shop! A few students would name family-owned stores close by,and when asked collectively as to where they would choose to shop,family-owned stores would always win. Why dont you shop at the Chinese shop? would be answered with an angry chorus of They cheat us at the Chinese shop! Students would warn me that the Chinese shop would charge me more for eggs and milk,and would sell me things that were too old.
For all the animosity my students displayed towards the local Chinese shop,it was still the largest and most obviously prosperous establishment for miles around. Nor was it alone in its success there are many shops like it in the northern and eastern parts of the country,where high mountains,bad weather conditions,lack of proper roads and distance from Maseru make transport and connectivity difficult for local residents and shop owners with limited resources. Although Chinese-owned establishments are not the locals first choice,they appear to circumvent the hostility directed towards them by having a constant supply of necessary products.
In Maseru,the Chinese face competition from Indians and other South Asians. On alternate weekends in the city,I would walk through many small markets filled with Indian,Pakistani or Bangladeshi-owned shops selling anything from groceries to electronic items to clothes. There seemed to be no distinction between Indian,Pakistani or Bangladeshi anyone with South Asian looks was Indian.
Despite my Indian looks,or perhaps because of them,it was hard to gauge the general reaction towards Indians. From conversations with colleagues at school and friends in the city,I got the impression that Indians acquired the reputation of being useful and trustworthy by having lived in the country longer. Additionally,many proved to be fair employers who stuck to the city for their trade without disrupting commerce in the villages. The Chinese,on the other hand,are known not only for village commerce but also for large clothing factories on the outskirts of the city. These factories are the biggest employers of local labour in a country that,lacking industry within its borders,mainly exports its labour to South African mines.
In addition to the factories,there is another building attributed to the Chinese,which sits atop the highest hill in the capital,visible from most parts of the city. This is Lesothos new parliament building,a gift from Beijing. The building, seemingly complete the day I arrived in Lesotho,had not been handed over to the local government when my year of service ended. Word was that the Lesotho government had not yet agreed to allocate a piece of land for a Chinatown in return for the gift. The presence of this building,both a symbol of resistance to the Chinese presence and a reminder of what will probably occur in the near future,makes one wonder how much longer Indian trade will keep to the city. Neither contender in the race for Africas resources seems to care about its reputation in local communities. Nor do they seem to understand why this lack of concern is problematic.
The writer recently returned from a fellowship in Lesotho
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