ABSTRACT
The first chapter provides important contextual background to the primary research theme of the book. It commences with a short but detailed historical account of Sino-African historical connections, before bringing Sino-African political relations into the discussion. The subsequent discussion of internal political and economic conditions and the way they have influenced bilateral relationships provides an important historical backdrop to the more recent phase when South African businesses have started to venture further and deeper into the international market, only reaching China to any significant extent since the early 2000s. The complex and occasionally uneasy interface of politics (and political agendas) and economics (and thus the business setting) between the two nations helps to explain how and why institutions have rather inconsistently served to support and facilitate both domestic and international business activities. The respective transitions of these two countries from an institutional perspective, looked at individually and comparatively, identifies key elements which help build a framework for the empirical case studies in Chapter Three.
