Story by Stanley James, Business Editor
ZIMBABWEAN and international business leaders convened in Harare on Thursday for the inaugural Zimbabwe-China Investment Symposium, with discussions centred on expanding trade and investment under China’s zero-tariff policy for African countries.
The symposium assessed progress by Zimbabwean industries in capitalising on the policy introduced by China in May to boost African exports to the Asian market.
Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe, His Excellency Zhou Ding, reaffirmed Beijing’s commitment to encouraging Chinese companies to invest in Zimbabwe, citing the strong growth of bilateral economic cooperation.
“Over the years, our cooperation has delivered tangible results. China has long been Zimbabwe’s largest source of foreign direct investment, with cumulative inflows reaching approximately US$10 billion across diverse sectors, beyond flagship projects such as Dinson Iron and Steel Plant, Prospects Lithium Complex, Palm River Energy Metallurgical Industrial Park, among others.”
Deputy Chief Secretary for Policy Analysis, Coordination and Development Planning in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Dr Willard Manungo said the country’s partnership with China aligns with the objectives of the National Development Strategy 2.
“The National Development Strategy Two is mainly anchored on attracting investors, and with the Chinese portfolio of projects, this is indeed vital as the nation looks beyond the domestic markets; otherwise, so far so good as far as the flow of investments from China to Zimbabwe is concerned.”
Minister of Energy and Power Development, Honourable July Moyo who was the guest of honour, described the symposium as an important platform for strengthening economic relations between the two countries.
“This is one of the key steps being made to cement relations with the Asian economic giant, and it is my hope that such cordial relations will continue at a time when Chinese investments in Zimbabwe have exceeded US$10 billion, in mining, infrastructure, agriculture, manufacturing and energy.”
Figures presented at the symposium showed that Chinese investment in Zimbabwe now exceeds US$10 billion, spanning the mining, energy, infrastructure, agriculture and manufacturing sectors, reinforcing China’s position as one of Zimbabwe’s largest investment partners.
