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Chinese companies are active in various sectors such as energy and power, mining, manufacturing, agriculture, construction, and services.
Zimbabweans are accusing Chinese investors of degrading the environment where they have established businesses.
China has become Zimbabwe’s largest source of investment under the Emmerson Mnangagwa leadership. Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency’s 2023 annual figures show that 369 licenses were issued to Chinese investors last year, with a projected investment value of US$3.93 billion.
The Chinese investors accounted for 40 percent of the projected value of new investment for the southern African country. Bilateral trade between the two countries reached USD 3.1 billion in 2023, a 29.9 increase from the previous year, according to China Customs statistics.
Chinese companies are active in various sectors such as energy and power, mining, manufacturing, agriculture, construction, and services.
Beijing has also poured billions of dollars into Zimbabwe’s infrastructure where it has built airports, power stations, and dams and even donated a Parliament building. But Zimbabwean authorities are accused of looking the other way as the investors disregard environmental laws, including the conservation of forests and pollution of water bodies.
A report by the Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG), a research and advocacy organization, says conflicts between Chinese investors and residents, especially in the mining areas, are getting out of hand.
The report alleges Chinese investors are taking advantage of President Mnangagwa’s administration’s push to attract investment in the mining sector, which has seen a relaxation of policies and less monitoring. Zimbabwe’s mining sector contributes about 12 percent of the country’s GDP and 80 percent of exports.
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