Zimpapers Logo

Africa Moyo in Bali, Indonesia

ZIMBABWE and other African countries learnt a lot at the Second Indonesia-Africa Forum and the High-Level Forum on Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships, especially that through leveraging available resources, all developing countries will transform the lives of people, Vice President Kembo Mohadi said yesterday.

Speaking at a media briefing to mark the end of his tour of duty here where he was representing President Mnangagwa at the key conferences that ran from September 1 to 3, VP Mohadi said the Global North developed mainly through exploiting minerals in the Global South, and that it was now time that developing countries fully benefit from their resources.

“It’s a question of living the experience, but I think it was an eye-opener to most of us. But one can be simplistic and say, yes indeed, I achieved what was required of us to do, not as Zimbabwe alone, but as Africa, because this is an Indonesia-Africa Forum.”

He also said there was a need to continue promoting South-South cooperation, in keeping with the 1955 Bandung Spirit that aims to foster cooperation between Indonesia and Africa.

While collaborating with the West was acceptable, there was a need for developing countries to accelerate their cooperation, said VP Mohadi, who was accompanied on the trip by Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Minister Monica Mutsvangwa, and officials from ZimTrade and the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation.

Business for Economic Development chairman Mr Tawanda Chenana also attended the conferences and engaged potential partners.

VP Mohadi said Minister Mutsvangwa informed him that she was impressed with the way Indonesian SMEs are organised and some of the lessons would be taken home.

Indonesians and other investors expressed keen interest in investing in Zimbabwe’s mining sector, with President Joko Widodo saying his country was already exploring for lithium.

VP Mohadi said in line with the “Zimbabwe is open for business” mantra; the country would continue to seek more win-win partnerships.

“We have over 60 different kinds of minerals in Zimbabwe but we are only exploiting about 40 of that and 20 others are not being exploited.

“In recent years, lithium just dropped like manna in Zimbabwe and we are rated as having the second largest deposits on the globe and Indonesia is very much interested in this lithium,” said VP Mohadi.

But he reiterated that all investors eying the mining sector must be prepared to set up value addition and beneficiation plants in Zimbabwe, as that would help create more jobs, ensure technology transfer and boost revenue for the country.

Zimbabwe sealed two memorandums of understanding with the Indonesians in the health and pharmaceutical sectors during the conferences.

VP Mohadi witnessed the signing ceremony.

A private company, Futurefert (Private) Limited, also signed a MoU with an Indonesian company, Supatra Global Harvest, in the field of coal fertiliser. The signing ceremony was witnessed by Indonesian Ambassador to Zimbabwe Dewa Sastrawan.

VP Mohadi said Zimbabwe should “run with them (MoUs) and bring them to fruition”.

“If they gain traction, fair and fine, we are going to have more and more,” he said. “But I think the Global South should now stand up and be a force to reckon with because we have all that is needed. 

“The Global North is what it is today because of the Global South so we need to turn the tables now and let the Global South benefit itself. We can do it,” he said.

The outcomes of the Indonesia-Africa partnerships have been concrete, resulting in a rapid increase in trade volumes and trade agreements.

This year’s Indonesia-Africa Forum recorded business deals reaching US$3,5 billion, almost six-fold from the first Indonesia-Africa Forum in 2018, said President Widodo.

Next year, Indonesia will organise the platinum jubilee of the Asian African Conference, commemorating the 70th anniversary of the summit.

Indonesia and Africa have great potential for cooperation, with a combined gross domestic product of US$4,4 trillion and a population of 1,7 billion.