HARARE – Zimbabwe is considering using its vast natural resources to fund road and railway construction projects with China, finance minister Mthuli Ncube said on Wednesday.
The southern African nation, Africa’s top lithium producer, has significant mineral resources. But years of economic mismanagement and political turmoil have left its infrastructure severely underdeveloped. The African Development Bank estimates Zimbabwe needs about $34-billion to modernise its transport and logistics networks.
Ncube said Harare has begun discussions with China Railway on resource-backed financing arrangements on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Dalian.
"We spoke to them about resource-linked debt instruments that we want to explore going forward to support our infrastructure development, especially roads and rail," Ncube told reporters.
Under such arrangements, Zimbabwe would pledge future revenues from natural resources to repay loans tied to specific projects.
