via Beware Chinese deals: diplomat | The Zimbabwean by Nelson Sibanda 18.11.13
Zimbabwe must weigh advantages accruing from its business deals with the Chinese as some of them are likely to cost Harare its sovereignty, warns a senior Dutch government official, Pim Kraan.
Pim Kraan told The Zimbabwean that one such project was the recent Beijing
$319 million loan for the Kariba Power Station. There were long-term disadvantages which might come out of such a deal. “The loan would bond Zimbabwe to Chinese for the 20 year repayment period. This literally means Zimbabwe would be bonded to the lending partner for the period.”
The Kariba project under which two 150 megawatt power units would be built, would be completed in four years. Although he benefits were relatively short-term, there was a need for caution and care while negotiating some deals.
Kraan added that Zimbabwe must audit its mineral resources and take sound economic judgements before committing itself to agreements.
Businessman Caleb Dengu supported Kraan, saying Zimbabwe was ‘blindly’
getting into unsustainable international agreements because the deals were negotiated by wrong people. He said the country was not attracting direct investment but investor loans which were biased against Zimbabwe.
“It is unfortunate that important international deals were being negotiated by non-business minded civil servants and politicians lacking the capacity to do so,” said Dengu. But the Minister of Finance, Patrick Chinamasa, said he strongly disagreed with that view.
“The energy deficit has hamstrung the growth of our economy,” he argued.
COMMENTS
CORRUPTION EVERYWHERE
Make deals if it becomes tough we will chase them away like what we did wiyh the West
@ washumba
Yes comrade, you ‘chased them away’ – except that now Chinamasa has been begging for money from those same westerners. And what did they [the IMF] do? They ‘chased him away’.
Hahahaha….how right
The Chinese are no strangers to colonialism. They are wealthy minorities controlling the economies in countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam etc. We would be unwise to regard their participation in the Zimbabwe economy as a selfless gesture of friendship to Robert Mugabe.
True. Don’t trust the chinese
The new masters of Africa mortgaged our great grandkids thanks to the mugabe criminals
We don’t eat sivereignty. Sovereignty or non, it is the politician benefiting from the minerals. Better mortgage them to the Chinese in exchange for an end to load-shedding, which will benefit all.
My friend Wekari-
We need an end to load shedding, but the funny thing is, when you walk along Harare’s CBD, you will find streetlights on during the day, and neon lights left on in empty shops. We need a national policy of energy saving.
My comments becoming too hot for the site. The Chinese are our trusted friends, a friend in need and a friend indeed. Who has a better deal than the Chinese deals. When you are in financial trouble you sell your assets, and mortgaging is better selling.
We had China during the war they are good friends but not in making such deals, they supply us with war machines only. For now we are not at war, just hold we will invite once again when the britons come back.
China is a good friend my foot. A country that makes sub standard structures for a friend is that friendship. A country that doesn’t care what its money is being used for in the countries that they finance, is that moral, friendliness or just business. What kind of a loan needs to be repayed over 20 years and we say westerners want to colonise us?
Very true. Who needs a loan for twenty years?
Being bonded for 20yrs? The old man will have long departed this earth and Zimbabwe to be particular,so does it really matter? To him sarai makasungirirwa!!