More and more Chinese workers head to places like Iraq, Nigeria and Pakistan to work in mining, oil-drilling and the sale of all things “Made in China.” But there is an underbelly to this economic growth.
Increasingly, Chinese workers abroad are being confronted with the security risks in these turbulent countries. Chinese topped the list of kidnapped foreign nationals in 2008, followed by French and Germans, according to Special Contingency Risks, a British kidnap insurance firm.
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The quote up top really caught my eye for several reasons. The Chinese are everywhere out there, and they are sending folks into some dangerous places. I have talked about their ventures into Iraq, Afghanistan, and Africa in the past, and I am always on the look out for any information about their PSC or PMC related activities.
Although with this story, it looks to me like these Chinese companies are dependent upon foreign training companies to increase their worker’s survivability out there. But as demand increase, so will the amount of companies able to provide such services. More than likely, it will be Chinese companies who will continue to grow and probably with the assistance of foreign advisors. At least until Chinese folks get their own industry expertise, and go it alone.
But what intrigues me is that once a training industry takes hold, it usually evolves. Will the next step for these companies be actually providing security services? Much like how the US market evolved with some of it’s training companies (Xe started as a training company for example).
The other question is would the Chinese even allow a training company to evolve to that level? I think the answers to those questions will be how wars and regional instability will impact all of these really risky ventures they have taken on out there. The Chinese are not immune to the ‘foreigner’ label, and a Somali pirate or a jihadist will find value in attacking them, just like they do with all other countries and their private ventures. The article made this point pretty clearly with the statistics presented.
The article also mentioned the oil giant CNPC. I would be very curious to read a briefing on any security issues they have come across. According to the report below, they have operations in ’19 high risk regions’. I have to think that out of all of those operations, they must have some sort of Chinese security firm tasked with force protection? And yet we hear nothing about this security? Maybe they are using all local military forces or local national PSC companies? Who knows, and that is the kind of stuff I would like to read more about. –Matt
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Chinese seek anti-terrorism training for work abroad
By Coco Liu
August 10, 2010
SHANGHAI, China — Hired by Chinese businesses, Adi Talmor robs, kidnaps and does his general best to make thousands of workers suffer.
But Talmor isn’t a criminal; he’s a consultant. The 38-year-old former Israeli paratrooper instructs Chinese workers in what he calls personal security training. It’s a field that has recently emerged across China, mirroring the country’s expansion into some of the world’s more perilous markets.
In accordance with Beijing’s “go-global” strategy, state-owned enterprises have signed multibillion-dollar deals in Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. Meanwhile, trade has flourished. In 2008, China bypassed the United States to become Africa’s top trade partner.
More and more Chinese workers head to places like Iraq, Nigeria and Pakistan to work in mining, oil-drilling and the sale of all things “Made in China.” But there is an underbelly to this economic growth.
Increasingly, Chinese workers abroad are being confronted with the security risks in these turbulent countries. Chinese topped the list of kidnapped foreign nationals in 2008, followed by French and Germans, according to Special Contingency Risks, a British kidnap insurance firm.
