Calls for papers

 

World Review of Entrepreneurship, Management and Sustainable Development

 

Special Issue on: "Chinese Corporate Strategy in Africa: A Critical Evaluation and Ways Forward"

Guest Editor: Dr Yacob Mulugetta, University of Surrey, UK

The past two decades have witnessed China’s burgeoning influence around the globe, with its growing importance as a major global economic player. As part of this process, China’s growing industries demand new energy and raw material suppliers, and its manufacturers are in a perennial search for new markets. Africa has become central to these strategies. In 2005, trade volumes between China and African countries exceeded 37 billion U.S. dollars and investment by Chinese companies in Africa topped 1 billion US dollars. Chinese companies are also taking on more construction projects in Africa. From January through October 2005, they won 6.34 billion U.S. dollars-worth of contracts in the continent. The official China-Africa policy white paper, published in January 2006, highlighted these key areas of cooperation and the need to complement them with political and diplomatic initiatives as part of the means to consolidate Chinese strategic interest in Africa.

While this is a further illustration of China’s confidence as an emerging global power, there is much uncertainty whether the Sino-Africa partnership is based on equal terms and reciprocal gains. Indeed, very little investigation has been carried out to assess the impact of this ‘new trade relationship’ on key economic sectors, environments and livelihoods in Africa. Such enquiries would need to ask some searching questions about the effect this partnership is having on other non-economic matters such as ‘governance’, the role of political elites in the facilitation of these commercial relations, and implications for human rights and environmental protection. Moreover, the implications of these processes on North-South relations is worth exploring as the emergence of China on the scene is having an influence on the character of the broader global political terrain.

This special issue will provide an in-depth understanding of the nature and mechanics of China’s corporate strategy in Africa.

Subject Coverage
Contributions are welcome to address the following and related topics:

• Evolution of Chinese corporate behaviour towards Africa over the past two decades
• Comparative analysis of Chinese and European (and North American) corporate strategy towards Africa
• Review the practice of Northern corporate involvement in Africa over the past three decades and why China is now a favoured investor
• Studies of individual value chains
• Imports of finished products and effects on national firms
• Effectiveness (or not) of Sino-African partnership on social and economic development
• Attitudes among diverse African social groups of China's corporate strategy
• Primitive accumulation
• Resource extraction and environmental impacts
• Changes in labour standards
• The role of national elites in the consolidation of investment partnerships

Contributions from researchers and scholars to submit conceptual, theoretical (but applicable and relevant), empirical papers as well as case studies are welcome.

Notes for Prospective Authors

Submitted papers should not have been previously published nor be currently under consideration for publication elsewhere

All papers are refereed through a peer review process. A guide for authors, sample copies and other relevant information for submitting papers are available on the Author Guidelines page

Important Dates

Submissions should be sent no later than: 1 May 2007