博茨瓦纳:合作带来就业前景
文 | 托洛洛·莱雅梅内（Tlotlo Lemmenyane）博茨瓦纳《星期日标准报》记者
翻译 | 王晓波
编辑 | 张梅
导读：
博茨瓦纳随时准备扩大与中国的合作范围，特别是直接投资和基础设施建设方面的合作，因为后者能够为博茨瓦纳创造急需的就业机会。
● 如何让中国企业雇用更多本地人
●希望更多的合作
“迄今五十多年来我们一直是一个独立的国家，不过我们清楚，必须制造商品并且与那些离我们很近或很远的国家进行贸易往来。我们也知道应当学习和利用其他国家先进的知识、经验和能力来增强我们自身的实力。这就是我今天来到中国的目的：寻求并得到这一切。”这是博茨瓦纳总统莫克维齐·马西西到访中国并参加2018年中非合作论坛（FOCAC）时所讲的一番话。
中非合作论坛自2000年成立以来已经被证明是一个非常成功的合作机制。每三年举办一次，今年9月北京刚刚举办了论坛峰会。对于中非合作，双方共同关心的就是如何深入理解中非为实现合作共赢所遵循的指导原则和战略方针。对此，博茨瓦纳大学公共外交专家Maitseo Bolaane教授认为，人们通常以为中国有非洲政策，可非洲却没有中国政策。她还具体说出中国对非洲的外交政策，它们分别出现在2006年和2015年中非合作论坛会议文件中。她说，“双方之间最大的不同在于，中国是一个国家，而非洲是一个大陆，有着巨大的复杂性和多样性。由于利益冲突和协调机制薄弱，协调国家、地区和大陆各层级的优先政策是非洲面临的一大挑战。”在这方面她认为,“非洲与中国的合作至少应当符合每个国家的国家优先发展目标。由于与中国相比，非洲国家处于弱势地位，因此他们有时感觉在谈判时无法掌握主动或表现强硬态度。”
如何让中企业雇用更多本地人
对博茨瓦纳来说，中非合作对创造就业这一国家发展重点非常有益。特别是考虑到博茨瓦纳的经济在很大程度上依靠钻石开采，而它属于资本密集型产业，无法为大量寻找就业机会的人提供工作的可能。在来中国参加中非合作论坛的前两天，莫克维齐·马西西总统还对中国进行了国是访问，着重就两国合作为博茨瓦纳提供更多的就业机会，从而带动国家经济发展与中方进行了深入探讨。在这方面有必要指出的是，过去中国与博茨瓦纳在经济方面展开的合作在民众中受到了一些负面的评价。博茨瓦纳大学Frank Younngman教授为此专门进行调查研究，他认为公众的这种看法源于中国企业不愿意雇用当地劳动力参与其项目建设，特别是在建筑行业的工作。
为了能够获民众的支持，Maitseo Bolaane教授建议，“在与中国就项目合作进行谈判时，关于解决当地就业的期望应当有所提及，并且写入最终的协议中，至少在公共事业领域有必要这么做。”她还指出，“中国企业从国内带工人去博茨瓦纳工作也并不合算，因为那样会增加不少成本，所以从效益的角度分析，雇用当地劳动力对双方都有好处。此外，同样重要的是，当地劳动力还应努力从事技术含量较高或者管理性的工作。劳动法和对技术转让的规定也应尽快落实。这些方面应当在项目谈判的早期阶段就提出来，引起双方的重视。”
希望更多的合作
与南部非洲地区的其他国家相比，博茨瓦纳与中国合作的项目数量相对较少。根据塔拉·麦金农撰写的一篇关于南南合作的文章中提供的数据， 2000年至2013年期间，中国与博茨瓦纳合作的项目有33个。而就在同一时期，津巴布韦与中国合作的项目达到151个，是非洲国家中与中国合作项目最多的国家。相比之下，博茨瓦纳与中国合作的项目数量就显得太微不足道了。进入2018年，博茨瓦纳与中国合作的项目也没有增加，到目前为止，新开工的项目寥寥无几。
塔拉·麦金农提到的几个得到中国援助的重点项目包括587公里铁路线的改造；从莱特哈肯至康的200公里公路的修建；717套低成本住宅的建设以及捐赠给恩尼亚布格韦医院10万美元的医疗设备，同时这是中国第十四次向博茨瓦纳派遣医疗队。
2015年中非合作论坛举办期间，博茨瓦纳的地方刊物《星期日报》上有报道称，博茨瓦纳提交了一项关于水资源软贷款融资的提案，希望能够成为中国向非洲提供的600亿美元财政援助中的一个重大项目，不过，报道中并未披露该项目所需的贷款数额。博茨瓦纳外交部常务秘书Gaeimelwe Goitsemang向该报介绍说，博茨瓦纳在此之前已经与中国进出口银行进行过多次会商探讨，目的就是为了使该提案能够符合申请软贷款时应遵循的程序。他还详细介绍了为了获得贷款，所提交项目需要遵循的具体程序以及国家需要符合的要求。在今年刚刚结束的中非合作论坛上，相信博茨瓦纳仍将遵循同样的程序向600亿美元财政援助提出申请。此外，中非合作论坛召开期间，莫克维齐·马西西总统对外表示，中国已经同意免除博茨瓦纳8000万普拉的债务。中国曾因为博茨瓦纳属于中等收入国家取消了对其提供资金援助，现在中国已经同意向博茨瓦纳给予3.4亿普拉的捐赠。
莫克维齐·马西西总统说，“博茨瓦纳非常重视中国，将中国看作自己的战略伙伴，随时准备扩大与中国的合作范围，特别是对博茨瓦纳的直接投资和在基础设施建设方面的合作，因为后者能够为博茨瓦纳创造急需的就业机会。
⬆博茨瓦纳首都哈博罗中央商务区（CBD）的建筑工地
英文版：
"We have been an independent country, for a little over 50 years now. We too know that we must produce and trade with those who are near to us and those who are far. We know that we must draw upon the knowledge, experience and ability of others to augment our own efforts. This is what brings us to China today: the search and pursuit of that.” This is what was said by Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi in his recent visit to China where he participated in the 2018 Forum of China-Africa cooperation (FOCAC).
FOCAC has proven its relevance particularly that the forum has since its inception in 2000 successfully held meetings every three years with the recently concluded 2018 meeting being the latest to be accomplished. Regarding the cooperation between China and Africa an area of interest commonly under discourse is how the partners can articulate the principles and strategic interests that guide the relations to achieve a win-win cooperation. This article solicited the opinion of an expert in Public Diplomacy, Professor Maitseo Bolaane of University of Botswana, to expound this topic of discussion. Professor Bolaane posited that it is often said that while China has an African policy, Africa does not have a China policy. She cited that China’s Africa policy was set out in two policy papers, drawn up in 2006 and 2015 respectively. “One major difference is that China is a country while Africa is a continent with great diversity. Coordinating policy priorities at national, regional and continental level is a big challenge in Africa because of conflicting interests and weak coordination mechanisms,” she said. In that regard she suggested that Africa’s cooperation with China should at the minimum fit into each country’s national development priorities. “However African countries also sometimes feel they are not in a position to negotiate or drive a hard bargain with China because of their relatively weaker position in the relation,” she said.
Drawing the China-Africa cooperation closer to Botswana a national priority is the creation of jobs. This is particularly important given that the country’s economy is largely hinged in diamond mining which due to capital intensive operations has not created the desired number of jobs to absorb those seeking employment. During his state visit to China two days before to the commencement of the 2018 FOCAC President Mokgweetsi Masisi attributed the potential economic benefit of the country’s cooperation with China to job creation. It is worth mentioning in that regard that China and Botswana’s economic cooperation has in the past been met with a critical public perception. According to research by Professor Frank Younngman of the University of University, a public perception emerged which regarded China’s economic involvement as disadvantageous as it apparently restricted citizen participation in especially the construction sector.
In response to the task of gaining public support Professor Maitseo Bolaane advised that “expectations concerning local employment should ideally be included in the negotiations and final agreement for every cooperation project with China, at least in the public sector.” Professor Bolaane also noted that the perception that Chinese companies are bringing in a lot of Chinese workers is often not entirely accurate as it is expensive to do so, adding that for reasons of cost-effectiveness many Chinese enterprises employ local workers. “It is equally important, however, that local people are also employed in higher-level technical and managerial positions, that there is enforcement of local labor laws and transfer of skills. These issues should also receive attention from the early stages of negotiating a project,” she recommended.
Botswana’s project distribution owing to her cooperation with China remains relatively low in comparison to her counterparts in the Southern African region. The recorded number of projects between the period 2000 and 2013 was indicated at 33 in a paper authored by Tara Mackinnon on the China south-south cooperation. The number paled against the indicated 151 projects in Zimbabwe, which was the highest figure recorded within the cited period. Fast forward to 2018, project distribution in Botswana under the cooperation does not demonstrate significant change as shown by the thin on the ground new projects to date. The few projects highlighted by Tara Mackinnon as yielded from China’s financial assistance include the renovation of 587 kilometer railway line; the 200 kilometer Letlhakeng-Kang road; 717 low cost housing and the medical equipment to the tune of $100,000 donated to Nnyangabgwe hospital which was a unique donation from the 14th Chinese medical team.
In the previous 2015 FOCAC local publication in Botswana, Sunday Standard, reported that Botswana submitted proposals for a soft loan funding in water resources as a major project that was to benefit from the $60 billion financial assistance that had been availed by China to Africa. The amount that had been proposed for funding was however not disclosed. The Permanent Secretary under the Foreign Affairs, Gaeimelwe Goitsemang, told the publication that Botswana had held meetings with export ad import banks in order to assist on the procedures to be followed when accessing soft loans. He expounded that to access the funding there are procedures to be followed for submission of projects and requirements the country needs to meet in order to benefit from the funding. It is as such expected that Botswana will follow the same process to access the $60 billion funding from the recently concluded 2018 FOCAC. Additionally, during 2018 FOCAC President Mokgweetsi Masisi revealed that China canceled a debt of P80 million which Botswana owed her. Moreover China previously disqualified Botswana from receiving grant funding on the basis of her status as an upper middle income country however the President said that China presented Botswana P340 million Pula as a grant.
In the words of President Mokgweetsi Masisi: “Botswana values China, as a strategic partner and stands ready to broaden the scope of cooperation particularly towards the country’s direct investment and infrastructure development that will create the much needed jobs.”
⬆People cross rail tracks in the Central Business District (CBD), in the capital Gaborone, Botswana, September 21, 2018. Siphiwe Sibeko
