From Botswana to China: Nikita Makwana Shares Her Journey at the APEC Youth Dialogue in Shenzhen, China
From childhood impressions in Botswana to the friendships and experiences that made China feel like a second home, Nikita Makwana reflects on how her understanding of China has evolved and what her journey has taught her about the connections between people and cultures.
At the APEC Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Youth Dialogue in Shenzhen, China, Nikita Makwana invited her audience to imagine seeing the world through three eyes.
“How many of you in this room have three eyes?” she asked. “I have three! Well, not literally.”
For Makwana, the three eyes are ways of seeing China: the China she first heard about, the China she experienced for herself, and the China she now holds dear.
A China Studies specialist from Botswana and a third-year PhD researcher at Jinan University’s International School, Makwana shared her story at the dialogue, reflecting on how a country that once seemed distant became part of her life. Her journey began long before she arrived in China.
The China she heard about
Growing up in Botswana, Makwana’s earliest encounters with China came through films, videos and news. She remembers watching kung fu movies, especially those featuring Jackie Chan. She was fascinated by the martial arts, the tea, the traditional clothing and the sense of modesty she associated with Chinese culture.
China also appeared in everyday life closer to home. Chinese shops operated across Botswana, including in some of the country’s smallest villages. Many of the retailers, she recalls, came from Fujian. Their businesses brought Made in China products within reach and offered a glimpse of China’s expanding manufacturing industry.
These early impressions gave Makwana a picture of China from afar, one shaped by popular culture, news and the products people used. That picture did not tell her everything, but it left her curious.
The China she experienced
In 2018, Makwana had her first opportunity to visit China through the Chinese Bridge competition, 汉语桥. She competed in the Chinese-language contest for university students, placed second and was selected as one of two students to represent Botswana in China.
She returned home after the competition, but her time away was brief. Just three weeks later, in September 2018, she was back in China to begin her master’s degree. She is now pursuing her PhD at Jinan University.
Living in China transformed her understanding of the country. She experienced the culture, language, food and tea first-hand, encountered new technology and observed the pace of the country’s development. She also met people whose resilience, curiosity and hard work made a lasting impression.
The transition was not always easy. Makwana remembers getting lost, struggling with the language and sometimes finding it difficult to work out which direction to take or how to navigate the subway. But over time, the unfamiliar became more familiar. She made friends, encountered cultural differences and discovered unexpected similarities.
Her perspective on the Made in China products she had seen in Botswana also changed. Living in China helped her recognise the innovation, effort and resilience behind them. What had once been a distant impression became a more nuanced understanding grounded in experience.
The China she holds dear
Makwana says it is difficult to pinpoint exactly when the third eye begins to open. She suspects it often happens after returning home.
By then, the country one once hoped to visit may have become a place of personal connection, almost a second home. There are friends, language partners or yǔbàn (语伴), professors and people who have become like family. There may be a Chinese name, familiar characters, remembered street names and places, and stories that remain vivid long after leaving.
For Makwana, those memories include the professors who taught her, the people she laughed with, the moments she cried while feeling homesick and the streets she walked. China has become part of her life and part of the stories she shares.
She notices it when the news mentions China or someone brings up the country in conversation. Her attention turns instinctively, a feeling, she says, much like hearing someone mention your own country while you are abroad.
People also ask her about China, and she finds herself talking about it again and again. Not because she knows everything about the country, but because the experiences, lessons, people and moments have stayed with her.
Even when she is no longer living there, China remains a place she carries with her. That, for Makwana, is the third eye: the China she holds dear.
Finding common ground
In her closing message, Makwana encouraged the audience to recognise differences while paying even greater attention to similarities. She has seen resilience, determination and hard work among young people in China, qualities that remind her of young people in Botswana and across Africa.
That shared spirit, she said, is more than something to admire. It can create opportunities for collaboration.
She also reflected on values shared across cultures, including respect for elders. Whether expressed through respect in daily life or offering older people priority seating on the subway, such gestures can reveal common ground between China, Botswana and many African societies.
Makwana ended by turning the audience’s attention towards Botswana and Africa. As people consider the three eyes through which she has come to appreciate China, she invited them to ask themselves how they see Africa. She encouraged them to visit, experience its cultures, build friendships and discover the opportunities that come from deeper engagement.
For Makwana, understanding a country begins with more than hearing about it. It comes from being there, meeting people and sharing experiences.
“The best way to understand any country,” she said, “is not just to hear about it, but to experience it.”
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