Much more often, Nigerians are tagged serial offenders, criminalised and identified with various crimes in their host countries scattered all over the world.
But there is an unheralded group of Nigerians who are excelling in different fields of endeavor, bringing immense pride and honour to their country.
One such Nigerian is Uzochukwu Bobby Marcy, a Nigerian businessman from Ngor Okpala Local Government Area, Imo State.
He is married to a Chinese wife and they jointly opened and run a cosmetic factory near Jinhua in Zhejiang Province in China.
China is the most populous country in the world with a huge, intimidating population of about 1.404 billion and the second biggest economy in the world after the United States of America with a staggering gross domestic product of $14.7 trillion (2020).
It has the fastest growing major economy in the world with growth rates averaging 10 percent over the last 30 years.
Therefore, competition for the economic space in China is very rife. The laws, to say the least, are draconian and the enforcement of the rule of law is stringent.
It takes a very disciplined person to break into the exclusive league of successful entrepreneurs in China.
There is no point emphasizing the fact that foreigners are under constant scrutiny for any break of the laws of the land.
Marcy survived all these regimented protocols to set up a thriving cosmetics business.
The product lines include face powder, eyeshadow, soaps and lip gloss and have gained global recognition, and are sold mainly in Africa, Middle East and South America.
According to Bobby, a proud father of two beautiful girls aged 14 and 5; China offers a muchmore suitable environment for setting up a factory.
Everything is conducive for business in China including power supply, good roads, ruthlessly efficient security of lives and property, rule of law, absence of corruption among others.
Bobby reiterated that once a foreigner does what is right in China, he was good to go.
China does not naturally confer nationality on foreigners but it can give green card which he is working on at the moment.
He was doing petty businesses ranging from shipping to restaurant service from 2008, but came up with getting a factory in 2015.
Although China welcomes foreign investments like any other country, the requirements for business registration are very tedious to meet.
His wife has been very helpful with the business which is documented and registered in her name because in China, husband and wife’s names substitute for each other.
During the COVID-19 outbreak in China, Bobby’s company, Aibaoni Cosmetics Company Limited, experienced a huge staff turnover necessitated by lockdown in that country.
This measure by the Chinese Government seriously affected foreign trade and impeded the operations of the factory.
In order to turn the tables, Bobby and his Chinese wife sacrificed time and money to inject life into the factory amidst the economic lockdown.
Their resilience and hard work yielded results as they were recognized by Sino- African cross-cultural documentary house to promote the factory and which made the Chinese government accord the factory with an award for resilience, integrity and promotion of Nigeria-China bilateral relation.
Bobby recalls the challenges induced by the pandemic with perceptive relief: “Some people will develop personally and economically through this pandemic but many others will struggle and become impoverished. I think with resilient spirit, we can make it through.”
In order to turn the tables, Bobby made all efforts to reach out to the Sino African cross-cultural documentary house to inject life to his company amidst the global economic downturn.
The short filmed titled Bobby’s Factory” is directed and filmed by Mr. Zhang Yong, who specialises in African films and television research at the School of Media and International Culture of Zhejiang University – China.
The aim was to meet with African audience and friends through the Sino drama – Chinese film and Television drama of Modern Era during 2022 Spring Festival to highlight the tremendous feat this great Nigerian has recorded in China and beyond.
Bobby’s Factory is a documentary film detailing how the Nigerian-born businessmen established the cosmetics factory in China.
The film amongst other things told the story of the humble beginnings in his native roots to becoming a household name in China.
It illustrates his uncanny ability to relate positively and respectfully with the Chinese, thus promoting Nigeria-China bilateral relationship.Importantly, the documentary now serves for him as a potent tool for business and influences.
Following outbreak of the novel coronavirus pandemic in early 2020, adverse impact descended on all countries in the world. Bilateral trade and personnel exchanges have been badly affected to varying degrees.
Bobby’s Factory in Zhejiang has become a microcosm of numerous transnational trade enterprises under the epidemic.
In order to ensure the normal operation of the factory, Bobby had to face the difficulties squarely and make new attempts and adjustments in product design and employee structure.
In this small factory, despite different nationalities, Bobby led the workers to work together to resist the cold winter and harsh conditions. It was both a challenge and an opportunity that he cheerfully embraced.
In November 2021, “Bobby’s Factory” won the first prize in the second national film and television anthropology collection.
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In the future, China-Africa cooperation through this initiative will expand to a wider range of fields, including people to people and cultural exchanges. Bobby admitted that, “Whether you are an African, Chinese or an American, I think the love for our families are the same.”
In recent years, cross-border marriage between China and Africa has become more and more common.
The differences of cultural customs between China and Africa often become an obstacle that is difficult to ignore in cross-border marriage between China and Africa.
Although Bobby has lived in China for many years, he is still surprised by the educational philosophy of Chinese parents. “In Nigeria, no parents will wait outside the examination room.”
However, Bobby waited outside the examination room for three hours for his daughters.
As an African who grew up with his grandfather in the East and an aunt in the Northern part of Nigeria, Bobby speaks Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba and Chinese fluently.
Living in China has not taken away his love for African foods. Often times, he would bring seeds from his hometown to China to sow, and would share the delicious foods with his wife and in-laws.
As the maxim goes, charity begins at home, Bobby is pained that he has not replicated his feat in China at home in Nigeria, but he is also comforted that he was working tenaciously towards setting up a factory in Nigeria.
Nevertheless, for the typical Ibo man that he flaunts proudly, he has opened an outlet in one of the major plazas at the Trade Fair Complex in Lagos to serve both as warehouse and a retail outlet for the goods from his factory in China.
