Despite all of the hype at home about Zimbabwe’s ties with the East, the Chinese know very little about us.
In my home country, the Chinese run anything from diamond fields to corner shops and restaurants, but in Beijing, there is little evidence of Zimbabwe’s growing partnership with the government.
Even the Zimbabwean embassy in China gave us the cold shoulder when we arrived, something that did little to alleviate the freezing weather conditions. Nonetheless, I went around Beijing hoping to find friends, but all I encountered was ignorance of my home country.
Recently, Chinese vice-president Xi Jinping described President Robert Mugabe as an “old friend”, but there is little to show for this budding relationship on the streets of the city. The onus is on the government of Zimbabwe to increase its presence in this great eastern country.
The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority could erect billboards like it did in South Africa and work hard to market our great nation as an economy worth investing in.
Post published in: Africa News