Of work, not much of this furniture actually comes from France or Bali. In lieu, most seems to originate in China. Hopefully, most people purchasing from these stores recognize they are paying for a �look� & not the actual deal.
On our tiny street there's at least shops selling �French provincial� furniture & design accessories. Wedged between of those shops & the DVD rental store is another design store selling �Balinese� furniture & gifts.
The proliferation of Chinese goods is not new. Neither is China�s growing business presence on the African continent.
What does appear to be changing is the terms of the relationship between Africans & the Chinese.
Whether or not the rules of the game are actually changing is thing, however, there is at least a public shift in the dialogue, with the Africans pushing for a less �one-sided relationship.� South Africa�s Business Day newspaper recently ran a headline that said: �Zuma seeks �fair deal� in Africa�s ties with China.�
African leaders - & I�ve interviewed numerous them in recent weeks - all appear to be making tougher contractual demands on their Asian counterparts.
South African President Jacob Zuma echoed what lots of other business & political leaders are saying on the continent. They appear determined to make positive that Chinese business deals in Africa are more equitable in terms of long-term investments, infrastructure maintenance, job creation & skills transfer.
Although Africans are favorable towards this relationship there's serious questions being asked by leaders like President Zuma. �How do they trade with China in a way that benefits us as well as them?� they recently said.
So it seems Africans are pushing back & insisting on tougher terms on contracts. Rwandan I had a conversation with said that some other African leaders had been �stupid� when negotiating with the Chinese & that the Rwandan business elite had been �cleverer� when constructing their deals with China.
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