Come January 1 next year, the Chinese yuan become an official currency in Zimbabwe following discussions held between the two governments during a state visit of the Chinese president.
This will make the Chinese currency an equal in Zimbabwe with the US dollar, the South African rand, and the Botswana pula, with the euro playing no role in this equation, perhaps a sharpish reminder of the negativity the European Union has shown against Zimbabwe.
China has become Zimbabwe’s largest trading partner and investments are expanding, following President Xi JinPing’s visit to the country some time ago.
Looking East, after the windows to the West were locked by the Western powers, the remaining avenue to Zimbabwe, besides intra African trade, has come to export and import goods, and the use of the yuan is expected to facilitate this further. A write-off of loans worth 40 million US dollars helped Zimbabwe at the time to find a sounder economic footing again.
Chinese tourist numbers are growing as they are for Zambia and other neighboring countries, and Emirates is the one of the few airlines, besides Kenya Airways, offering daily connections from a number of Chinese cities via Dubai to Harare.
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