China demands explanation as Zimbabwe understates aid figure by US$133 million
- Southern African nation is asked for ‘full and convincing’ account after finance minister says funding from China in first nine months of 2019 was US$3.6 million
- By comparison, United States, Britain and European Union contributed a combined US$141 million in the period
At a 2020 budget presentation last week, Zimbabwean Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said the country received a total of US$194 million from donor countries in the year through September, of which just US$3.6 million came from China.
The Chinese embassy in Harare put the figure at close to US$137 million.
“This is a very serious mistake,” deputy ambassador Zhao Baogang said immediately after the figures were released. “The Zimbabwean officials must give a full and convincing explanation.”
On Tuesday, the embassy issued a statement saying that according to its records the total financial support provided by China in the period was US$133.2 million more than stated.
“The embassy has noted that in the statement [issued by Ncube] … the figure for support provided by China to Zimbabwe is US$3,631,500,” it said. “The actual [figure] is US$136.8 million.”