Zimbabwe commissions Chinese-funded airport terminal extension

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Friday commissioned the new Chinese-funded expanded terminal at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport in the capital Harare.

The terminal expansion started in 2018 by China Jiangsu International with funding from the Export-Import Bank of China. The expansion will increase the airport’s passenger capacity from 2.5 million to 6 million.

The new terminal consists of an international terminal building and aprons, four new bridges, a secondary radar system, a VVIP pavilion and an airfield ground lighting and communication system, among other things.

In attendance were senior government officials, the Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe Zhou Ding and other foreign diplomats.

President Mnangagwa said the modernized facility is magnificent and now meets international standards. He also said the airport has brought positive strides to the Zimbabwe economy “including skills and technology transfer, as well as the creation of employment and empowerment opportunities.”

Speaking on the relationship between Zimbabwe and China and the benefits it comes with, Ambassador Zhou said that bilateral relations have continued to deliver tangible results and that the airport project “is another testimony to our fruitful cooperation and another monument of friendship.”