Chinese President Hu Jintao brought his eight-nation African tour on Monday to Namibia, a sparsely populated, mineral-rich desert country that hopes to benefit from an influx of Chinese investment and tourists.
Drummers and dancers in traditional dress greeted Hu at the airport. Chinese and Namibian flags and photos of Hu and Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba decorated the main highway from Windhoek’s airport in preparation for the 24-hour visit.
Hu arrived from Zambia, where he inaugurated an economic cooperation zone designed to draw $800-million in mining investment and create 60 000 jobs in the Copperbelt province.
Hu said the Copperbelt partnership was ”a showcase for a higher, new level of China-Africa business cooperation”.
Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa said the agreement would ”change the face of the Copperbelt and, indeed, the Zambian economy in that our raw materials will now have chance to enjoy value addition of unimagined proportions.”
Hu has used the tour — which also included a stop in Sudan — to cement China’s increasing economic and political ties and its fast-growing role as a foreign donor throughout the continent.
In Windhoek, Hu was expected to have talks with Pohamba, Namibia’s former president Sam Nujoma and attend a state banquet.
Pohamba, who became president in March 2005, has actively promoted cooperation with China, and trade in the first 11 months of 2006 amounted to $240-million, an increase of 103% from the previous year.
Namibia, which has a population of only about two million people, is rich in diamonds and minerals such as uranium, zinc and cobalt.
It has a longstanding friendship with China, since the Asian country backed its struggle for independence, which it achieved in March 1990.
Since then Nujoma has visited China 13 times and Pohamba has already been twice, further cementing ties.
In December, the Namibian government secured an N$18,2-million (US$2,6-million) interest-free loan from China for various national development projects.
This follows a 2005 interest-free loan of N$44,9-million (US$6,3-million) to implement small-scale industrial and farming projects.
Hu’s visit to Windhoek is expected to focus on: trade initiatives to help Namibia widen its industrial base; access for Namibian products into the Chinese market; and tourism. Namibia is becoming an increasingly popular destination for Chinese tourists.
The Beijing government has conducted a number of education and health projects, including financing primary schools in rural areas and exchange programmes for Namibian students and Chinese professionals.
China has been involved in a number of construction projects such as the drilling of wells, the building of low-cost housing and a children’s recreation centre.
There has been an increasing number of Chinese enterprises operating in Namibia and Hu is expected to meet with Chinese businesses leaders before leaving on Tuesday for South Africa. — Sapa-AP