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Africa Moyo Deputy News Editor
Vice President Kembo Mohadi has implored Chinese investors to grab investment opportunities that abound in various sectors such as tourism and agriculture. In an interview with The Herald after meeting China’s Vice Minister of Commerce Mr Qian Keming at Munhumutapa Building in Harare yesterday, VP Mohadi said he had a “very good meeting” with the visiting delegation.

“It was just a courtesy call . . . we discussed on a number of areas, that is the projects that the Chinese are undertaking in Zimbabwe, which include the Hwange 7 and 8 (expansion), and NetOne and others.

“But we also discussed about other areas that is in agriculture, telecommunications, and all those areas where we applied for assistance under the umbrella of Focac (the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation),” said VP Mohadi.
He said Zimbabwe’s debt to China came under discussion.

The delegation was promised that “whenever we get the resources we will meet our obligations”.
As at June last year, Zimbabwe’s arrears for loans from China were US$217 million, and at one point, the arrears almost threatened to scupper financial closure for Hwange Thermal Power Station expansion.

Mr Qian and team is expected to visit Hwange to assess progress on the project before departing for China.
VP Mohadi also said the hospitality sector was another area that was “discussed extensively”.

He said Zimbabwe wants “more tourist arrivals from China” to get foreign currency, which “we are starved of”.
“I did emphasise to them that it should not only be tourist arrivals. “They must also be interested, if they so wish, to invest in the tourism industry itself, even in agriculture (in) areas like citrus, even in the growing of tobacco.

“What we only need as Zimbabwe is the infrastructure to come here, our people to get employment, when they get employment they have got disposable income and when they have disposable income, our taxable base widens and when it widens, our GDP also grows.

“That is what we want,” said VP Mohadi.
He said they also discussed politics given the umbilical chord that ties the two countries, and how they support each other in international fora.

Earlier, foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Dr Sibusiso Moyo had said the visit by the Chinese team was “not by accident, but it’s a cementing of very strong relations.”

“We are no more doubting or questioning your sincerity of the relationship which exists between these two countries, but it’s a question of, ‘what do we continue to do together to improve and enhance the status of our relations?’”