Mugabe’s Downfall Could Be Good Business for China
- New party leader Mnangagwa seen as more friendly to investors
- China is Zimbabwe’s biggest foreign investor, key aid provider
Zimbabwe's Mugabe Steps Down After 37-Year Rule
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China has seen its influence rise in Zimbabwe during Robert Mugabe’s nearly four decades in power, becoming the African nation’s third-largest trading partner and biggest foreign investor. Beijing might gain even more if he goes.
Former vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa, whose removal sparked last week’s military intervention, is seen as more open to investment from China and other nations than Mugabe, according to researchers who advise President Xi Jinping’s government on Africa policy. Mnangagwa is poised to take Mugabe’s job after replacing him as leader of the ruling ZANU-PF party on Sunday.