New Frontiers ripe for exploitation

Left: A construction site of China Road & Bridge Corporation in Nairobi. Right: The first electric train exported to Africa came off the production line at China South Locomotive and Rolling Stock Co last month. Ding Haitao / Xinhua

To understand the real impact of Chinese SOEs in Africa, one need only look at the massive road construction project near Mayombe in the Republic of Congo.

Mayombe, a huge virgin forest with more than 300 kinds of plants, is also right in the middle of what was once an important transport network in central Africa. The abandoned, crumbling 580 kilometer road network between Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire received a new lease of life after the State-owned China State Construction Engineering Corp undertook a massive reconstruction project in 2008.

Once construction is completed, the road is expected to benefit more than 65 percent of the Republic of Congo's population of 4.2 million. The 164 km first phase of the project was completed and opened to traffic in October 2011.

"Although a fully-functioning road was a dream for the Congolese people, it was a tough challenge for us. The old road was out of repair for several years and many parts had been submerged under forest growth and rainwater," says Li Jiqin, general manager of the overseas department at the CSCEC.

"Getting through the Mayombe forest was a formidable challenge for us because we had to battle tropical diseases, such as malaria, typhotoxin, filariasis and dengue fever and also worms, snakes and other dangerous animals," he says.

We were undaunted and decided to forge ahead, rather than give up, Li says, adding that the motto in those days was, "Go forward, go forward. Chinese people are making history in Mayombe."

The second phase of the project is now under way. The CSCEC plans to hire more local people in an effort to provide more job opportunities and boost local residents' salaries, company officials say. The first phase provided jobs to 4,000 locals, while the second phase has provided jobs to more than 3,000, they say.

Other Chinese SOEs have also been expanding and making more direct investments in Africa.

China Jiangxi Corp for International Economic & Technical Cooperation is another Chinese SOE that is seeking to diversify its international operations by investing more in building materials and solar-power industries.