Chinese companies operating in Africa must be more sensitive to local conditions and give back to communities to succeed in a continent that is a growing Chinese investment target, officials said yesterday.

China?s engagement with Africa has been deepening, with more than 800 companies, most state-owned, ope-rating there as China covets Africa?s oil and mineral wealth to feed its economic boom and invests heavily in improving Africa?s infrastructure.

But as China?s presence increases in Africa, so does criticism its companies violate labour and environmental standards and leave little to trickle down to local communities.

?Chinese companies still lack knowledge of African people and African markets,? Lu Bo, a deputy director at China?s Ministry of Commerce, told a conference ahead of the official opening of the African Development Bank?s annual meeting.

?Chinese companies are not deeply rooted in Africa, therefore we must be well-prepared for all kinds of challenges and problems,? he went on saying.

In one of the most widely publicised examples, guards shot six workers amid rioting over low pay at a Chinese-financed copper mine in Zambia last year, and labour conditions among Chinese enterprises became an issue in the country?s general election.

Do better about social responsibility

?Some companies have learned a lesson from these experiences. China is a developing country as well ? there is not sufficient protection of labour rights,? Lu said.

?Although it was not the intention of Chinese companies to cause these issues, some companies did not meet problems head on,? Lu said, without referring to specific cases.

?This demands some attention. Chinese companies should strictly observe local laws and regulations,? he said.

A $5 billion development fund for Africa, offered by Chinese President Hu Jintao at a China-Africa summit in Beijing last year, has recently been officially approved.

Yesterday, Chinese media cited China Development Bank vice president Gao Jian as saying it had permission from China?s cabinet to start raising the first $1 billion of the fund.

But despite China?s growing aid commitment to the continent, officials said Chinese companies would have to do better to counter perceptions about their social responsibility in African markets.

?There also are concerns about the extent to which Chinese construction companies are deve-loping local skills and local supplies and that needs to be taken into consideration. It is a sensitive subject,? said Jonathan Wood, head of project finance at Standard Bank.

Sensitivity to African communities would mean greater commercial success for Chinese companies operating there, officials said.

?A key success factor is to ensure that you engage the local population and make sure that they see that there is a payback for the investment, that there is a social responsibility associated with that corporate activity,? said Timothy Turner, director of the private sector and microfinance department at the African Development Bank.

?Yes, investment is important, profitability is important, but there needs to be something in it for the local population.?

LEGISLATION

China promises greater public say in framing of laws

■ China vowed yesterday to allow greater public participation in shaping legislation and in overseeing some judicial matters but insisted judges stay under the control of the Communist Party.

The promises came in three official reports issued during an international meeting on the rule of law in China, the latest indication that legal reform is high on the government?s agenda. But the timing of any deeper changes was uncertain.

The legislative affairs office of China?s State Council, or cabinet, said the country has progressed towards a stronger legal system but also acknowledged it had a long way to go.

Inefficiency and abuses in making and enforcing law could be cured only by allowing a stronger public voice, the office said.

?First, further broaden the public?s participation into lawmaking,? said the English-language version of the report issued at the meeting co-sponsored by the Asian Development Bank.

The report recommended expanding public hearings and expert consultations. ?In particular, we must bring into play the supervisory role of news media, industrial organisations, trade associations and research institutes,? it added.

Judicial measures included proposed regulations to make the enforcement of decisions more transparent, so officials cannot undermine judgements. They would also expand the role of jurors, and make court appointments more open and regulated.

But China?s lawmakers and judges remain under the firm but usually low-key control of China?s ruling Communist Party, which assigns legal jobs and often decides cases through its own legal affairs committees.

The report from the Supreme People?s Court said party control was not going to change even as the government promises greater transparency. It said the first principle of court reform should be to ?adhere to leadership by the Communist Party.?

Arthur Mitchell, general counsel of the Asian Development Bank, said greater judicial transparency was needed to realise rule of law as more of China?s economy escapes from state control.