Zimbabwe Newest Recipient of China’s Building Diplomacy

Zimbcbwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Tang Wenhong vice Chairman of the China International Development Cooperation Agency shake hands at the handover ceremony of the new parliament building in Harare on October 27, 2023. Image via @ChineseZimbabwe.

China on Thursday formally handed over Zimbabwe’s new $100 million parliament building. The six-floor, 33,000-square-meter complex was fully funded by the Chinese government and framed as “a gift to the people of Zimbabwe.”

This use of buildings as a form of diplomacy has become an important part of Africa-China relations. China provided the headquarters of the new African Centers for Disease Control, the Economic Community of West African States, and government buildings in Ghana, Tunisia, Malawi, and Lesotho.

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by Cobus van Staden

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