October 25th, 2020

Before you consider that trip to China

By :

The meteoric rise of China, especially in terms of trade and industry, has been both fascinating and overwhelming to the world. As such, the attention of the entire globe has long been shifted towards the Asian country with a distinguished history of 5,000 years.
Records have it that China entered a communist-era of stability since 1949 when the People’s Republic of China birthed. The strength has been aided by the Reform and opening up of policy of 1978, which resulted in China’s phenomenal economic growth. The development has seen China establishing and maintaining mutual trade relations with many countries across the globe.

Africa is not left out of this trade relationship, especially as China has shown so much interest in the economy of the black continent. The trade affiliation between China and most African countries has so far grown from Africans embarking on business trips, to the Asian country granting loans to poor African countries.

China is a proud but very attractive country comprising various ethnic groups, bursting with rich traditions. While the government is coming to grips with the reality of urbanization, capitalism, and globalization; most businessmen across Africa are seizing the opportunity for expansion of trade and investment.

It is therefore in the interest of Africans intending to do business with the Chinese in their country, to have a basic understanding of a whole lot about China; her people, culture, language, etc. This will go a long way in enabling a successful business venture.
Knowing China before taking a step further into making arrangements to travel, is crucial and should begin first with considering how workable one’s business interest is. Things may not turn out well if one decides on the kind of goods to import from China, for instance, only based on stories heard from associates. Therefore, intending businessmen should as a matter of importance get necessary information about their would-be host country before arriving at a decision to travel.

China is a large country with every region owning its sub-culture and, in most cases, its own language or dialect. Thinking of travelling for business demands flexibility, studying their culture, and as a matter of fact, having some level of humility.
A trader who fails to get acquainted with vital information about his proposed host country may well expect disappointment right from own country, as the Chinese embassy in his or her country may likely become the stumbling block.

It is likely that some of the information may change with time while most others, especially the ones bothering on culture and language, hardly change.

The global pandemic, Covid-19, which punctuated life and brought world superpowers to their knees, is one of such factors that causes a change in information about a country.
The coronavirus which began mysteriously in Wuhan, China, before spreading all over the world, no doubt, has affected regulations for foreigners. It, therefore, behoves on Africans looking to do business in China to know the rules that have changed, in order to succeed in their ventures.

This means that a good number of people, who hitherto overlooked the importance of reading, may well imbibe the habit. In addition, the positive side of the internet should be utilised to get appropriate information about this very dynamic Asian country.
African businessmen and women, who are ready to explore China even before being physically there, are more likely to be recompensed with immense opportunity to tap into a massive market. Knowing China before travelling to the country, will also afford them the chance to understand how it rose from ranking high in terms of world population to becoming a global economic motivating force. The resultant effects will no doubt, be that of business expansion!