Zimbabwe should respect the rule of law and create a predictable environment which lures investors, a German diplomat has said.
BY OUR STAFF
Ambassador Georg Schmidt, German regional director-general for sub-Saharan Africa and the Sahel told journalists yesterday that rule of law was important in political terms where people felt they were protected. He said foreign investors would also look at rule of law before making decisions on investing in a destination.
“The general framework for rule of law is a critical factor for private sector to get involved in the Zimbabwean economy,” he said.
Schmidt was speaking after his meeting with Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa to discuss economic and political cooperation, over a decade after the European giant cut ties with Zimbabwe following the imposition of restrictive measures in 2002.
Schmidt said the two parties discussed Zimbabwe’s debt problem, acknowledging that it was a complicated matter and Germany would work closely with the Paris Club.
“We talked about debt problem, it is a very complicated one, it involves multilateral and bilateral dimension. Whatever we do, we have to coordinate closely with the Paris Club. We are following with great interest what the IMF [International Monetary Fund] is doing”.
Zimbabwe owes Germany $739 million.
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Chinamasa said the visit was the first contact Zimbabwe has had with Germany in over a decade, signifying the thawing of relations between the two countries.
“His visit is laying the foundation for the restoration of political and economic ties. It’s an exploratory visit to understand our concerns as we do understand their concerns,” he said.
“We had a fruitful discussion centering on debt, engagement with IMF and relationship with the Paris Club creditors.”
On the need to ensure the rule of law, Chinamasa said: “As we try to woo investors, they need to come into a framework which is predictable and have recourse to the law.”
