Khadija Patel

The Chinese government’s interest in Africa is highly visible. It has paid for public buildings such as Lesotho’s parliament building and the African Union’s headquarters in Addis Ababa, in addition to promoting considerable investment in infrastructure. Less visible is the investment from Chinese individuals and families who come to Africa on their own account to trade and build businesses.Khadija Patel takes a closer look at what drives and troubles them. At the sprawling China Mall in Johannesburg, Roy Qin runs a women’s clothing store, one of scores of shops in this hangar-like shopping centre. As he steam irons new stock,…

The Chinese government’s interest in Africa is highly visible. It has paid for public buildings such as Lesotho’s parliament building and the African Union’s headquarters in Addis Ababa, in addition to promoting considerable investment in infrastructure. Less visible is the investment from Chinese individuals and families who come to Africa on their own account to trade and build businesses.Khadija Patel takes a closer look at what drives and troubles them. At the sprawling China Mall in Johannesburg, Roy Qin runs a women’s clothing store, one of scores of shops in this hangar-like shopping centre. As he steam irons new stock,…