Zimbabwe wants Chinese-backed infrastructure investments to include local financial participation, with pension funds and banks being positioned to take equity stakes in major projects such as railway modernisation.
Deputy Finance Minister Kudakwashe Mnangagwa told the Zimbabwe-China Investment Symposium that foreign investors should structure deals in ways that include Zimbabwean capital, suggesting models where local institutions could take up to 30 percent equity while external investors provide the balance.
Priscilla Sadomba of FBC, speaking on the same panel with Mnangagwa, said Zimbabwean banks were in a healthy state and could participate in well-structured investment deals.
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe data supports the view that the banking sector has remained relatively stable. The sector’s capital adequacy ratio stood at 29.69 percent at the end of December 2025, while non-performing loans were 3.07 percent as at September 2025, below the internationally accepted 5 percent threshold.
The call shifts the conversation from investment attraction to investment structuring, with government pushing for local participation in large-scale infrastructure projects rather than leaving Zimbabwean institutions as spectators.
Mnangagwa pointed to rail as one of the major areas where such financing models could be applied, as Zimbabwe seeks to modernise transport infrastructure critical to mining, agriculture, trade and regional logistics.
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Zhuang Guangyi of China Railway Group said his organisation was confident it could work with Zimbabwe on successful railway modernisation, signalling continued Chinese interest in one of the country’s most urgent infrastructure gaps.
The discussion also highlighted a persistent challenge in Zimbabwe’s investment pipeline: the gap between licensed investment projections and actual money deployed.
Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency chief investment promotion officer Silibaziso Chizwina said there was often a discrepancy between figures declared at licensing stage and actual committed investment. ZIDA’s 2025 fourth quarter report showed monitored inflows of US$1.547 billion, representing a 31 percent realisation rate against monitored project projections.
Financial Intelligence Unit Director-General Oliver Chiperesa also warned investors on the need for compliance, particularly with banking laws, saying formal banking channels should not be treated as optional tools used only when convenient.
Zimbabwe and China are going through a recalibration of economic relations towards sustainable and mutually beneficial outcomes as both sides seek to address questions that have emerged after years of rapidly expanding investment.
Zimbabwe is increasingly pressing for greater value addition, technology transfer, local participation and structured community benefits, while Chinese investors are calling for greater policy consistency, infrastructure improvements, regulatory predictability and a more balanced public narrative around their operations.
The discussions at the symposium suggest a relationship entering a more mature phase, where the focus is shifting from attracting investment at any cost to ensuring it delivers.
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