STEMBILE MPOFU
In 130 CE the Chinese city of Xi’an marked the starting point of the ancient world’s most famous trade route, the Silk Route. The route linked Ancient China to India, Asia Minor, Mesopotamia (Iran), to Egypt in Africa, Greece, Rome and Britain. The Silk Route was a road and sea network used to transport merchandise that included China’s silk to and from distant lands. Chinese silk was one of the most coveted goods in the ancient world. It is said that Rome’s financial collapse was in part attributed to the fact that so much of Rome’s silver was going to the east to purchase silk. The route was used until 1453 CE when the Ottoman Empire closed it and cut off all ties to the West after the fall of the Byzantine Empire.
In 2018, China has established itself as the hub of global manufacturing. The next step in China’s ambitious growth plan is to link up with all the regions of the world to source raw materials to feed its manufacturing industry and once produced, find markets for the goods. To achieve this China has returned to her ancient past for inspiration and is reviving its ancient silk route through The One Belt One Road Initiative (BRI). Like the ancient trade route the BRI will link modern China to countries that make up 62% of the world’s population and account for 30% of the world’s economic output.
The One Belt One Road Initiative is a clear-cut illustration of how the past can inform the future. China as a nation has remained strongly rooted in its historical past. Throughout history the Chinese have remained very wary of western influence on their culture and as a result have remained strong in their traditions and beliefs. This consistent link with their traditional knowledge systems has provided the Chinese with a treasure trove of economically viable products that are contributing to their economic growth. This knowledge and these products have little competition on the global market because they are derived from Chinese knowledge systems. Chinese silk, Chinese food, and traditional Chinese medicine generate huge revenues not just for the Chinese economy but also for Chinese people living in different parts of the world. China, over the last 40 years, has come from being ranked as a developing country to the 2nd largest economy in the world.
The narrative on China has generally been very negative making most people averse to examining the Chinese model to see what can be learned from it.
It should however inspire curiosity because China’s economic success has debunked the rule that economic prosperity is a result of democracy and strong democratic institutions. What should make the Chinese model interesting for Africans is that China has managed to rise to economic prominence on its own terms for the most part.
Reflecting on China’s success and looking at Africa’s current economic situation we will find that there are certain actions taken by China at different levels that have contributed to its success.
These actions can be divided into three tiers, socio-cultural, legal and political. Lets imagine a pyramid and at the bottom there is the socio cultural level, then the legal level on the second tier and the political at the top.
If one looks at these it is easy to identify what actions the Chinese took to achieve growth and also the obstacles that hinder Africa’s ability to make similar strides.
The socio cultural level is the foundational level from which the legal and political levels emerge. It is here that a people will derive their sense of self worth. Africans have a very low sense of self worth. It is reflected in the demeaning discourse that takes place amongst ourselves when we speak of our inability to develop and see our knowledge systems as inferior when compared to other groups. What has brought about this mindset is the fact that the continent of Africa was colonised. The process of colonisation destroyed African religion, education systems, legal systems and political systems and replaced them with new ones. Removing the religious traditions and diluting culture left most Africans with no clear reference point as to who they were and where they came from. This has been unlike the Chinese who throughout history and until now have remained very wary of outside influence, remaining strong in their own beliefs and knowledge systems. Emerging from this place of self-belief and confidence their strategy has been to use the global system to their advantage, merging who they are with this external system. Looking at the second tier on the pyramid, the legal level, we will find that African legal systems became subordinate to the European legal systems that were imposed by the colonisers. Even after attaining independence most African countries did not try to rationalise their systems to incorporate their own laws informed by their own legal traditions. What was not realised was that the laws within the legal system perpetuated rules that were to the advantage of the colonising group.
This has become apparent as Namibia and South Africa challenge the property rights laws that are enshrined in their Constitutions by challenging the land ownership of a small group of white farmers who own large tracts of land to the exclusion of indigenous groups. Both governments are working towards putting in place laws that allow for expropriation of some of this land without compensation.
The pushback on this endeavour is coming from as far afield as America. Zimbabwe remains under pressure to reverse its own land reform process after instituting it 18 years ago.
Contained in the legal system are financial rules and regulations that work to the advantage of the colonising group. Again Africans did not take time to reflect on how economic activity takes place within their context and develop models and concepts that took those into account.
When undertaking their recovery plan the Chinese developed their own financial models to guide and measure their progress. They used their own model to measure GDP and were not too concerned that it was considered inaccurate by external economists and global financial institutions.
They have not let the value of their currency be determined by market forces and ensure their currency remains weak so their goods are competitive in other markets. China has disregarded many of the legal and financial rules set up by the Western controlled institutions and only seems to comply when it has achieved a set objective.
Colonisation in Africa involved assuming political power over a territory.
Political power was a means to enforce the legal system and ensure adherence to the socio-cultural systems that had been altered. Although Africans believed they had become independent on attaining political independence they did not.
What African Independence amounted to was putting Africans in positions that had been occupied by the former colonial rulers who had presided over an oppressive and unjust governance system.
That governance system remained the same. What transpired was that Africans continued to oversee and enforce a system that was designed to benefit the colonising group. As things stand today the majority of African countries are in a state of Virtual Independence because the system designed to benefit the colonising group remains in place.
The Chinese had the courage to undertake political reforms when they realised the political model they were using was not working for them. They have used a political model that has supported their economic growth.
Comparing the Chinese political arena with the American arena today may reveal why the Chinese have achieved consistent growth over this 40-year period. It may also reveal why the possibility of the Chinese achieving global dominance is not a far fetched one at this stage as they steer a steady ship.
With this overview in mind, the question is what lessons are there for Africa in the Chinese story? First of all it is essential to recognise that Africa is a continent made up of 54 countries each with its own borders and economy. There is a need to begin to work for cohesion among the various economic blocks. The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) is a very good starting point to build strong economic links. ACFTA’s success will depend on the strength of each country’s resolve to break out of the socio-cultural, legal and political constraints that have kept Africa and Africans in the state of servitude. We must reexamine our education systems and assess the extent to which they contribute to the poor self image Africans have of themselves. To understand this point we only have to look at how British and American history is taught to British and American children, they are taught to believe that their past was glorious. Their history speaks of heroes and heroines who conquered the world and made great strides in scientific discoveries.
The same history is taught to African children and the role of their forefathers and mothers in the stories is that of being poor and uneducated and in need of deliverance from the British heroes. This narrative is reflected in different ways in the various subjects taught in schools like economics and English literature where even African authors reflect poverty and suffering as the order of the day. The information we consume through movies and magazines constantly reflect these negative images of African knowledge systems. This is to the extent that we have begun to produce our own negative narratives reflecting our belief and knowledge systems.
It will be imperative to begin to interrogate our legal systems and assess the extent to which they work to the detriment of African upliftment. As a rule we tend to blindly adhere to the rules set by the dominant global players without interrogating them or, where we see they are to our detriment feel too weak to challenge them.
As a united African entity able to negotiate as a block the ability to shift things in our own favour will increase.
Achieving such unity requires political will. This brings us to the question Africans must begin to ask. Will the system of electoral democracy provide the kind of leadership needed to take Africa forward or perhaps there is need to invent a political system that conforms to Africa’s current state and needs? It may be that the current political systems we are implementing are not what are best for the continent. We may need to challenge ourselves to begin to imagine something different.
As we face the prospect of China becoming the world’s next super power let us be inspired by its economic success.
We must know that the possibility to stand as an equal partner with other global players is real. China has achieved this in a short time frame of 40 years. Our objective is not to mimic the Chinese journey but to chart our own course to economic upliftment. With the courage to create its own set of rules Africa can succeed.
