Research Professor

Current Position: Research Professor, Fudan Development Institute, Fudan University

Postdoctoral Fellow: St Antony’s College, University of Oxford

Research Interests

  African economic development

  Informal economy and social institutions

  Global Special Economic Zones (SEZs)

  Theory and practice of Area Studies

  Long-term fieldwork and cross-regional comparative research

Overseas Fieldwork and Visiting Positions

     2014–2016: Visiting Scholar, School of Economics, University of Cape Town, South Africa

  2022–2023: Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Oxford

  2023–2024: Visiting Scholar, Makerere University (Uganda) & University of Mauritius

  2024–2025: Visiting Scholar, University of Rwanda & University of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania)

  2025.3–2025.8: Visiting Scholar, University of Rwanda & University of Dar es Salaam

  2025.9–2025.11: Visiting Scholar, School of Economics, University of Cape Town, South Africa

  2025.11-2027.11: Visiting Scholar, SOAS, UK

Fieldwork Projects

  Industrial Stratification and Employment Elasticity in East African Informal Economies

  Ports and Shipping Economies in Sub-Saharan Africa

Database Construction

  Sub-Saharan Africa SEZ Development Database

  Eastern and Southern Africa Informal Economy Database

Publications

1) Monographs

  Yang, C. (2022). SEZ Development and Transformation in South Africa. China Social Sciences Press.

  Wang, Y. & Yang, C. (2024). Fusion and Innovation: The Evolution of Mixed Ownership in Chinese Enterprises. Springer.

2) Translation

• Yang, C., Zhu, P., Wang, S. (2024). Economic Development in the 21st Century: Lessons from African History. By Matthew Kofi Okorren. CSSC Press.

3) Selected Articles

• Wang, Y., Jin, P., & Yang, C. (2016). Independent Directors’ Backgrounds and SOE Performance. International Review of Economics & Finance, 42.

• Zhao, J., Wang, Y., Jin, P. & Yang, C. (2017). SOE Managerial Incentives. Corporate Board, 13(1).

• Feng, L. & Yang, C. (2022). Private or Collective Land? Land Reform in Ghana. African Studies, 19(2).

• Zhu, P. & Yang, C. (2022). Capital Power and Ethnic Politics in South Africa. Journal of Area Studies, 1.

• Yang, C., Lei, D., & Feng, L. (2023). SEZ Development in China, South Africa, and India. South Asia Studies, 2.

• Yang, C., Qin, B., & Dou, B. (2025). Economic Problems from an Area Studies Perspective. Journal of Area Studies, 1.

Book Chapters

• Yang, C., Wang, Y., Black, A. & Chen, M. (2020). Evaluating SEZs in South Africa. In T. Niblock, Y. Yang, & Y. Zhou (eds.), Area Studies: New Realities, New Conceptions. CSSC Press.

• Black, A. & Yang, C. (2021). South Africa’s SEZs as Destinations for Chinese Investment. In C. Alden & Y.-S. Wu (eds.), A South Africa Relationship. Palgrave.

• Yang, C. (2024). SEZ Development in South Africa: Coega Case Study. In G. Yang, J. Zhang, L. Liu, & X. Xiong (eds.), Countries and Regions: Dynamic Interconnectivity. Springer.

Conference Papers

  WANG, Y., YANG, C & CHEN M. 2019. ‘The Dominant Influential Factors of Boundary Expansion of Digital Businesses in China: A Discussion Based on the Internet Traffic’, paper was presented at 19th Conference of European Academy of Management, 25-27 June.

  YANG, C., CHEN, M. & ZHANG, WEI. 2019. ‘Special Economic Zones in South Africa: Historical Context, Spatial Intervention, and Zone Performance’, paper was presented at 19th Conference of European Academy of Management, 25-27 June.

  WANG, Y., YANG, C & CHEN M. 2020. ‘Transformation of the government role in the development of special economic zones in China’, presented at 20th Conference of European Academy of Management, December, 2020.

  CHEN, M., YANG, C., ‘Understanding the Effects of “Ethnicity” in Entrepreneurship from a Generational Lens: The Case of the Ethnic Korean in China’, presented at 23th Conference of European Academy of Management, May, 2023.

  YANG, C., LEI, D., FENG, L., 2024, “Development of Special Economic Zones: A Comparative Study Based on China, South Africa and India”,8th Voice of social sciences (VSS), University of Dar Les Salaam, Dar Les Salaam, 7-9 December.

  YANG, C., WANG, Y. & QIN, B., 2025, “Navigating governance transformation: A comparative analysis of Temasek and China’s SOE management models”. Paper presented at the 25th Conference of the European Academy of Management (EURAM), June 2025, Florence, Italy.

Teaching and Outreach

    Teaching: African Economic Development; Informal Economy in the Global South; Area Studies Methodology.  

  Public Lectures: Invited speaker at “Humanities Tsinghua” Forum (2025).

  Media: Interviews with CGTN; live commentary on Great Migration (2025).

Email: yangcsthu@163.com