2015年CRI Expectations Run High as President Xi is to Visit Zimbabwe

Streets and shop windows throughout Zimbabwe's capital, Harare, have been adorned 1 with Chinese flags. 

Local newspapers in Zimbabwe have also been focusing a significant amount of coverage 2 for the past 3-weeks on China-related topics. 

Mabasa Sasa, editor of the state-owned Herald 3 and Sunday Mail national newspapers in Zimbabwe, says its hoped the Chinese President, who the papers have been calling "Uncle Xi" in their editorials, can help solidify 4 and create a number of new economic agreements for the country. 

"This visit what he does is add impetus 5 to those deals that have been signed. Some of them were signed last year when President Mugabee went on a state visit to China. You are talking of energy, infrastructure 6, water, health, agriculture, mining. It's a whole range of industries. So what this visit does really is it adds impetus to the implementation 7 of those projects. " 

Zimbabwe's state-run power provider has already managed to secure a 1.2-billion US dollar loan from the China Export-Import Bank to upgrade its power generation capabilities 8. 

Numerous other deals covering areas such as infrastructure, agriculture, mining and transportation are expected to be signed. 

Chinese authorities are also said to be in talks about opening up new areas of financing to give Zimbabwe access to much needed lines of credit. 

Christopher Mutsvangwa, Zimbabwe's former Ambassador to China, says despite a slowdown this year in Chinese investment in Africa, Zimbabwe has continued to enjoy increasing Chinese investment since Zimbabwe's independence in 1980. 

"The trade between China and Africa at that time was about 8 billion. Now it's about 220 billion. This is almost an exponential rise in the relationship between China and Africa. So nothing is going to stop this relationship from achieving prosperity for the two peoples of Africa and China, for the two regions, developing regions, Africa and China." 

China has been Africa's largest trading partner since 2009. Chinese ties with Zimbabwe, formalized by Chinese diplomatic recognition after its independence from Great Britian in 1980, have remained close for the past 35-years.

China's engagement with Zimbabwe has prompted a significant number of Chinese companies to set up operations in the country. 

Li Haiyang, head of the Chinese Chamber 9 of Commerce in Zimbabwe, says an influx 10 of new Chinese help in Zimbabwe would be greatly appreciated. "Chinese companies' development has the support of local governments and the people of Zimbabwe. 

The general investment environment is very good. 

However, in recent years, Zimbabwe's economy has not being doing well, which has been hindering the growth of Chinese companies in the country."

Following his time in Zimbabwe, Xi Jinping and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe will head next door to South Africa for a 3-day Forum 11 on China-Africa Cooperation, which the Chinese President will chair. 

The Chinese government has rolled out around 900 assistance programs in Africa in areas such as agriculture, health and education, and has also provided technical training to some 30-thousand people in Africa over the past 3-years. 

For CRI, this is Li Jianhua.