Chinese Gov’t Breaks Silence on China Square Business Row

The Chinese government has broken its silence over the ongoing controversy surrounding China Square, a Chinese-owned supermarket in Nairobi.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Chinese Embassy in Kenya said it has taken note of the recent situation on the issue of China Square, and “would like to reiterate that the Embassy supports deepening trade and investment cooperation between China and Kenya, and supports Chinese enterprises and Chinese citizens in conducting business in accordance with Kenyan laws and regulations.”

"At the same time, we hope that the Kenyan government will protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises and Chinese citizens, and create an inclusive and friendly business environment, so as to better promote China-Kenya practical cooperation and bring benefit to our two countries and two peoples,” the embassy stated.

China Square, located at Unicity Mall on Thika Road, recently closed its doors indefinitely amid an uproar from local traders over low-priced goods.

The store opened on January 29th, offering a range of household items, from kitchenware to furniture and hardware. It quickly became popular but Kenyan traders claimed the retailer cut them out of the market by selling its goods at a deep discount.

Following the complaints, Trade Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria said he had held talks with Kenyatta University, which owns Unicity Mall, about leasing the site to Kenyan small traders.

“We welcome Chinese investors to Kenya as manufacturers not traders,” Kuria wrote on Twitter.

China Square owner Lei Cheng insists the supermarket and other Chinese companies should be allowed to operate just like other foreign-owned businesses.

“If other foreigners can do business in Kenya so can Chinese because we have done nothing wrong. Our customers are happy because we have drastically reduced our prices,” Cheng said.

Cheng told Daily Nation that in the first two weeks in business, China Square’s sales reached Sh20 million a day.

“Nowadays, on a bad day we sell goods worth Sh10 million,” Cheng was quoted as saying.

“My business is legal and is centred on healthy competition. We have cooperated with all government directives for opening a business in Kenya and we are here to break the monopoly. The people who are fighting us feel threatened because Kenyans now know we exist and we are not exploiting them in pricing.”