via President meets Chinese counterpart today | The Herald August 25, 2014 by Lloyd Gumbo
President Mugabe is today expected to meet his Chinese counterpart, President Xi Jinping, as Harare and Beijing seek to strengthen co-operation in many economic sectors.Speaking to the media after a closed-door meeting following President Mugabe’s arrival here yesterday, Foreign Affairs Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi said the two leaders would deliberate on a number of issues.
He, however, declined to disclose the full agenda of today’s meeting.
“The main item on the agenda tomorrow is the meeting between His Excellency President Mugabe and his Chinese counterpart, His Excellency Xi Jinping,” he said.
“Following on the meeting between the two leaders will be a State banquet to be hosted by President Xi honour of his visitor.”
Minister Mumbengegwi said ministers under the Zimbabwe – China Joint Permanent Commission met from August 21-22, 2014, where they reviewed progress on co-operation between Zimbabwe and China.
He said they discussed co-operation in a number of areas among them infrastructure in energy, transport, information communication technology, agriculture as well as the social sector.
“We agreed that both sides must step up co-operation but the details of the commission will be spelt out in due course,” said Minister Mumbengegwi.
President Mugabe is in China for a week-long State visit that is expected to unlock investment in infrastructure.
The President is accompanied by First Lady Amai Grace Mugabe, their son Bellarmine, Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Dr Joseph Made, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Walter Mzembi; Information, Media and Broadcasting Services Secretary Mr George Charamba and other senior Government officials.
The delegation was received at the Beijing International Capital Airport by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to China Cde Frederick Shava, Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe Mr Lin Lin and other senior Zimbabwean and Chinese government officials.
Also at the airport to receive the President and his delegation were ministers who had been part of the advance team among them Cdes Mumbengegwi, Patrick Chinamasa (Finance and Economic Development), Obert Mpofu (Transport and Infrastructural Development) as well as Walter Chidhakwa (Mines and Mining Development).
The ministers are part of the Zimbabwe-China Joint Permanent Commission.
President Mugabe inspected a guard of honour mounted for him by the Chinese Army on his arrival at the airport before going into a closed-door meeting with Zimbabwean and Chinese officials.
Mr Charamba on Sunday said the thrust of the delegation’s visit was to deepen cooperation between Harare and Beijing contrary to claims by some sections of the private media that the delegation was in China to look for money.
“We are largely looking at investment of an infrastructural nature and the focus is on energy, that is coal and thermal, hard communication by way of road networks, rail, locomotives,” Mr Charamba said.
“We are also looking at areas to do with agriculture to take forward our programme of mechanisation. We are looking at strengthening the telecommunications sector, possibly broadcasting.”
COMMENTS
Who are they fooling??? His excellency this his excellency that plus all sorts of meet and greet at the airport like they really are important , it’s truly comical yet so sad for the masses who would just like some bread and butter. Or just bread for that matter.
As if that would solve Zimbabwe’s myriad problems. Stay at home. clean up the mess. And WORK instead of LOOTINg and BEGGING. Hamunyare here?
Reporting for duty, comrade president of china. ” what are your instructions “. Your obedient son , robber muggers
Behind closed doors, after the Chinese have achieved another milestone in their plans to take over Zimbabwe, they must laugh their heads off at how easily they have achieved this. Give that old man assurances that he will never lose power and he hands it all over. Even we did not think it would be so easy. A whole country and all it’s resources for keeping one old man rich and in power, ha ha ha.
Chinese are looting no investment. After the meeting, like Lobengula Mugagbe would have been given a parama for own use at the expense of huge mining concessions.
For those who may not be aware of this Lobengula story, this is what happened according to historians. Lobengula was a Ndebele King after Mzilikazi and the other after him. When the white settlers came to now Zimbabwe, before then it was not even recorded as Rhodesia. The settlers through their emissaries, discussed with Lobengula and they gave him a param and an assortment of goods for use and personal security like guns and gun powder in exchange for hunting and mining rights. That opened up for demagogues like Rhodes and the De Beers companies and the final colonisation of Zimbabwe. The meetings were carried in privacy. Things to note are that the so called gifts were for the benefit of Lobengula and the close associates, at the expense of everyone else. The Chinese are doing the same, deals for the benefit of Mugabe and ZANU PF at the expense of us all. They are given money, homes, guns and ammunition and medical support for their personal benefit.
bruce koffe
Inkosi uLobhengula never controlled Mashonaland, Manicaland regions – how then do you claim “That opened up for demagogues like Rhodes and the De Beers companies and the final colonisation of Zimbabwe”???????
Rhodes and others colonised Mashonaland first, a region inkosi uLobhengula never had any control over before trying their luck in Mthwakazi. So its not true that any agreements thet the King had signed led to overall colonial occupation.
The Shona Chiefs and their subjects are responsible for allowing Rhodes’s colonialism right from the word go. This distorted history of blaming our king has been propagated by gukurahundi tribalists for years in order to soil the good name of our people. This has to stop!!
I challenge anyone out there to name just one country in the developing world, which has very close financial and economic relations with China to the total exclusion of the western world that has become a glowing success story both politiclly and economically?
I look around and all I can see as success stories are countries with close relations with the west; e.g. Botswana and none among those close to China.
Makes you think??
I dont see the Chinese genuinely committing billions of the green backs in a country whose political future is so uncertain – worse still, one run by a 90 year old. That will never happen!!
“….The President is accompanied by First Lady Amai Grace Mugabe, their son Bellarmine, Agriculture….”
Yaah, indeed Robert jnr is always left behind. This proves beyond doubt he is not the gukurahundi’s son. Even in Dali Tambo’s People of the South programme – the boy was left out.
Besides, this Bellermine boy doesnt he attend school?