The Operations of Chinese Infrastructure Multinationals in Africa: Mediating Two Development Processes (Paperback, 2021)

Chapter 1 introduces the research objectives and background. The centre of the analytical work is aimed to address the internationalisation of Chinese infrastructure MNEs in Africa.

Chapter 2 gives a review of issues related to Chinese outward FDI and MNEs, particularly in Africa. Some data explication intuitively provides background information of Chinese OFDI, China in Africa and policy issues over recent decades.

Chapter 3 reviews the relevant existing literatures, including the mainstream of IB theories This chapter also presents a few studies on FDI in Africa, foreign direct investment in infrastructure and policy researches on China in Africa. Keeping in view the importance and lack of connection of relative studies, this chapter provides the basis for more focused conceptualising in the framework in the later chapters.

Chapter 4 discusses in detail the mixed-method approach adopted. It gives a detailed explanation of characteristics of the information. Qualitative research method is the main approach, which applies to both Chapter 6 and Chapter 7.

Chapter 5 begins with an attempt to formalise the broad concept of infrastructure MNEs based on the modes of IB analysis and applies aspects, of this to the discussion of Chinese FDI in the construction and ICT sectors in Africa. Chinese infrastructure MNEs expanding into Africa are serving to mediate between the needs and potentials of two differently-based and differently-phased processes of economic development. At the macro-level Chinese economic growth has generated notable surpluses of capital and foreign exchange, which are being leveraged to support, inter alia, the internationalisation of Chinese business.

Chapter 6 analyses the determinants and motivations of investment in ICT sectors in terms of two Chinese MNEs. Using the panel probit model, the analysis relies on correlates of the digging firm-level data from relative data resources and then country-level factors and institutional indicators on determinants of investments. This chapter evaluates the influences on location choices by general country-level factors as the objective determinants and sectoral conditions as the subjective motivations in specific sectors. It thus provides a fundamental and complementary analysis for the latter case-study chapter.

Chapter 7 mainly uses the interview data for case studies including construction firms in Mozambique, telecommunication firms in South Africa and Mozambique, and both governments ‘institutions and draws a comprehensive wide-range picture of performance of Chinese MNEs in infrastructure-related investment. It provides exploratory work based on propositions regarding the internationalisation processes of Chinese infrastructure MNEs and their developmental implications.

Chapter 8 draws together the key concepts and arguments. It concludes that the central theme will be to demonstrate how careful and case-specific application of extensions of existing frameworks and analytical constructs can secure important understandings of vital real-world issues. Thus it applies the comprehensive understanding of IB theories with an overview of how and why Chinese IMNEs have asserted a significant participation in African development to allow for an informed evaluation of the implications of this interface.