A delegation from China’s ruling Communist Party on Tuesday held talks with President Robert Mugabe on increasing trade and economic cooperation and closer political ties, state media said.
“We discussed ideas of extending cooperation to a new stage,” Cao Bochun, the leader of the visiting delegation, was quoted as saying by the Ziana news agency.
The group, which includes members of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, also discussed ways of forging even closer political relations with Zimbabwe’s ruling Zanu-PF.
The eight-member delegation is on an exchange visit that includes talks with Trade Minister Samuel Mumbengegwi “to discuss further trade and economic cooperation”, said an official from the Chinese embassy in Harare.
The delegation arrived in Harare on Sunday and was due to end its visit on Thursday.
Last year Zimbabwe exported commodities worth Z$1-billion to China, mostly iron and steel, Ziana said.
Political relations between Zimbabwe and China, which supported the country’s fight for independence against white minority rule in the 1970s, have remained strong.
Mugabe, facing increasing isolation by Western powers, has encouraged Zimbabweans to look to the East for new markets.
China has recently awarded Zimbabwe an approved destination status, which should see numbers of Chinese tourists to Zimbabwe — currently estimated at 10 000 a year — increasing. — Sapa-AFP