Cooler relations with China under newly elected Zambian president

China's Africa adventure is facing problems after a summer of protests, writes Gavin du Venage.

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China is accustomed to being welcomed across Africa, by democrats and dictators alike. Recent changes of government, however, have exposed a vein of resentment that could crimp Beijing's resource safari.
The collapse of the regime in Libya led by Colonel Muammar Qaddafi and South Sudan's independence have upended long-standing relationships that China has used to gain advantage over western competitors for access to oil. Most recently, the victory of Zambian opposition leader Michael Sata has threatened China's resource investment ambitions.
Last month, Mr Sata swept to power in an electoral landslide in the former British colony, one of the world's largest copper producers. His election platform leaned heavily on anti-Chinese sentiment, which, considering China is the country's biggest investor, may seem a risky gambit.
Mr Sata, who once worked as a platform sweeper in Britain, knows his audience. He tapped into growing resentment of China's dominance of the economy, and this helped him defeat the pro-China incumbent Rupiah Banda.
"The Chinese are very crafty. I know the Chinese very well," he said in a much-publicised interview with a Danish radio station earlier this year. He has also openly endorsed Taiwanese independence, a taboo subject for any government hoping to develop a relationship with Beijing.
China has invested about US$2 billion (Dh7.34bn) in the country, mostly in copper mining projects. Zambia is Africa's largest copper producer, and China's insatiable demand for electrical cabling makes it a ready customer.
Under Mr Banda, Zambia went all-out to woo Chinese state enterprises and ease their access to the country's wealth. Zambia is home to two of China's six special economic zones in Africa. Recently the capital, Lusaka, became the first African city to offer Chinese banking that allowed the deposit and withdrawal of yuan.
While Mr Banda did everything possible to make the Chinese welcome, ordinary Zambians came to resent the competition from a flood of expatriates, many of whom had little more skills than the locals they replaced.
Some of Zambia's markets, particularly the chicken market in downtown Lusaka, are now almost entirely Chinese run. The refusal of the Banda government to prosecute two Chinese managers who had overseen a shooting in which 11 striking Zambians were wounded is still a sensitive issue. Even more so is the increased presence of Chinese small traders, vendors and truck drivers, who take jobs from locals.
Mr Sata has made it clear that under his leadership, the relationship will have to change. His first act of office after his election was to meet Zhou Yuxiao, the Chinese ambassador. The meeting was officially meant to clear the air clouded by electioneering rhetoric. But he also said the days of allowing unrestricted immigration were over.
"We welcome your investment but as we welcome your investment, your investment should benefit Zambians and not the Chinese," Mr Sata told the ambassador.
"It is in law that all investors who are coming to Zambia should bring a limited number of expatriates whom they cannot find in Zambia. My party has taken concern at the unlimited number of people your investors are bringing to Zambia."
It is a situation Beijing may encounter more frequently in the future. Libya's rebels have said they will revisit oil contracts signed under Col Qaddafi - many of which went to Chinese oil companies. Chinese diplomats have also been scrambling to rescue oil-drilling concessions in South Sudan, which achieved independence this year after years of bloody civil war with the north.
China had done business with the northern Sudanese regime, shrugging off calls to join international sanctions, and falling back on its non-interference policy. Now that the South has secured its independence, China has its work cut out rescuing its concessions, most of which lie in the south.
Zimbabwe is another country where it may face a future shut-out. Chinese companies have built up a formidable presence in the country, encouraged by the "look East" policy of strongman Robert Mugabe, investing heavily in agriculture and mining. But opposition groups warn that should the ailing dictator fall from power, contracts signed under his watch could be scrapped.
China's non-interference policy may have won it a competitive advantage on the continent, but it increasingly risks being seen as a collaborator with rogue governments, while ignoring the sentiment of people on the ground.
In doing so, it risks losing out to eager western companies that have woken up to China's challenge in Africa.
business@thenational.ae