Of Other Spaces? Hybrid Forms of Chinese Engagement in Sub-Saharan Africa
Chinese economic activities in Africa have gained increased visibility in parallel to the recent acceleration of Sino-African relations. This paper, which is framed from a geographical perspective that is often absent or neglected in studies covering China–Africa, focuses on the spatial forms and dynamics. It depicts the way in which two contrasting Chinese economic entities – a state-owned company in Chad and privately owned commercial malls in Johannesburg, South Africa – engage with their respective host environments. While drawing on concepts of “liminality” as well as “heterotopias”, I argue that the modalities of the Chinese footprint are characterised both by closure and interaction, creating a dynamic tension that produces its own set of unique practices. This ambivalence between enclave and active linkages with host societies is not only perceivable from a spatial point of view, but also emerges with regard to economic strategies. In the midst of a transitional period, along with a launching and a consolidating phase, the Chinese economic entities in both case studies show signs of change in terms of behaviour and territorial foothold.
Year of publication: |
2015-04
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Authors: | Dittgen, Romain |
Published in: |
Journal of Current Chinese Affairs - China aktuell. - German Institute of Global and Area Studies (GIGA), ISSN 0341-6631. - Vol. 44.2015, 1, p. 43-73
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Publisher: |
German Institute of Global and Area Studies (GIGA) |
Subject: | Chad | South Africa | enclave | graft | resource space | hybridisation | oil | mall | Chinese actors |
Saved in:
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