Shocking : Mthuli Omitted USD$133 Million from National Budget

20/11/2019Last Updated: 20/11/2019

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Mthuli lied, US$133m is missing furious Chinese dispute National Budget figures. According to Mthuli Ncube, the Chinese donated only US$3.6 million.

This figure pales in comparison to the US$50 million donated by the United State government, the US$50 million donated by the United Kingdom, the US$41 million donated by the European Union and the US$28 million donated by Sweden.

The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe has disputed the figures of aid they donated to Zimbabwe which was given out by Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube during the 2020 National Budget presentation last week. Unsurprisingly the Chinese were not happy about these figures and insisted that there was a shortfall of more than US$133 million. According to the Chinese Embassy, the bilateral aid to Zimbabwe stands at US$136.8m and not US$3.6 million.

Below is the full statement from the Chinese Embassy. Figures of China’s Bilateral Support to Zimbabwe in the Budget Statement Shall be Revisited. The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Zimbabwe has taken note of the release of the 2020 National Budget Statement by the Zimbabwean government. The Embassy appreciates the positive role the budget will play in promoting the policies and propagating the facts and figures related to the economic development of the country.

In the meantime, the Embassy has noted that in the statement, among Development Partner Support (on Page 51) received by the Zimbabwean government through bilateral channels, the figure of bilateral support provided by China to Zimbabwe is 3,631,500 USD. This is very different from the actual situation on the ground.

According to our record, from January to September 2019, the actual bilateral support provided to Zimbabwe by China is 136.8 million USD. Such a figure does not include the other bilateral supports such as the expense of expert assistance, Embassy’s donations to local vulnerable groups and so on.

The Embassy wishes that the relevant departments of the Zimbabwean government will make comprehensive assessments on the statistics of bilateral supports and accurately reflect its actual situation when formulating a budget statement.

The Embassy believes that with the efforts of the Zimbabwean government and people, and with international support, Zimbabwe will achieve prosperity and development and realize the vision 2030.