Two of the deals are private sector-driven.
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Speaking at a Zimbabwe-China investment conference Tuesday, Industry and Commerce Minister Mike Bimha said Zimbabwe had a diversified manufacturing base that offered huge investment opportunities for Chinese investors.
The president arrived on an Air China jet with wife Peng Liyuan and an entourage of journalists and officials.
Some of the deals are at various stages of implementation.
Another deal is for the construction of a new Parliament building outside Harare.
Xi and a large Chinese delegation fly on to Johannesburg on Wednesday ahead of the sixth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), which will gather leaders from across the continent.
However, Chinese investment in Zimbabwe is tiny in comparison with its neighbours, as China has become Africa’s main trading partner now, although that has declined significantly in 2015.
“As for whether China will continue to provide support and aid, there will be no doubt about it”, Zhang said, without divulging details on the aid amount and its goal. We thank you in advance.
U.S. denies Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s charges that sanctions have been responsible for his country’s economic woes. And there is far less investment from Beijing into Zimbabwe than into any of its neighbours, such as Zambia, Mozambique and Angola.
The Chinese side has indicated that President Xi is likely to announce a three-year package for the cooperation with Africa in areas including industrialisation, agriculture modernisation and infrastructure development.
“Such initiatives are a clear departure from Beijing’s aversion to military or security intervention in Africa”, said Mr Lyle Morris, a project associate at RAND Corp, citing in particular the military assistance Mr Xi pledged in September. Zimbabwe now rations daily power to consumers because it can not meet average total demand of 2,200 megawatts, with production cut to about half of an installed capacity of 1,800 megawatts in recent years.
President Xi hailed President Mugabe for leading Zimbabwe on a development path and uncompromised stance towards external interference.
Xi held talks with Mugabe to discuss the traditional friendship between the nations, seeking pragmatic cooperation in various fields, and deepening the bilateral partnership of mutual benefits and common development. “Last year Zimbabwe and China agreed to be good friends and brothers on an equal footing”, he said.
As the world continues to undergo profound and complex changes and as developing countries acquire growing collective strength, more eyes will be on this vibrant continent of Africa.
Zimbabwean economic commentators said Chinese yuan’s internationalization, a lengthy process whose latest development include establishing an global payment system to joining worldwide Monetary Fund (IMF)’s Special Drawing Right basket.
With Zimbabwe struggling with mass company closures and lay-offs, high unemployment, food shortages, low liquidity and foreign direct investment, many people are hoping that Mr. Xi’s visit will not just be a symbolic tour but help change their lives.
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He said the two leaders agreed to upgrade the relationship from trade of primary commodities to investments and beneficiation.
