Zimbabwe Looking East
By Fay Chung
Published by Mlilo we Fundo (2015)
ISBN: 978 7974 6434 6

CHINA remains one of the greatest examples of a country that has managed to climb the ladder of development through the efforts of its masses.
Of course the Chinese people could not do it on their own without the guidance of their determined leaders or nationalists who hoped for a brighter future for China.
Without doubt, China ‘boasts’ the fastest growing economy that is even posing a threat to the so-called global hegemony of the US.
Author of Zimbabwe Looking East, a Zimbabwean of Chinese descent, Fay Chung, discusses a number of issues that she thinks should be addressed in Zimbabwe.
She participated in Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle, particularly on the education front and served in the post-independence Government.
Her book, which is much of Chinese history, touches on the turmoil China went through in order to achieve its prestigious status which is threatening a number of states in the world.
Zimbabwe Looking East is a book that also dwells on the link between Zimbabwe’s foreign policy decisions vis a vis its national interests.
According to Fay, Zimbabwe decided on a foreign policy to ‘Look East’ in 2002 soon after Western sanctions were imposed on the country with the US on the forefront of passing its Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZDERA).
However, Fay’s book shows that it is not only sanctions that cripple a nation, but also failure of leaders and the masses to work together.
It is against this background that one must note that the ‘Look East’ policy opened avenues for Zimbabwe to increase its trade relations with Asian countries, more importantly China.
Fay corrects the misconception that Zimbabwe decided to ‘Look East’ as a way of ‘enjoying’ the Western development style of heavy donor aid which comes at a price.
“It is to be noted that the Chinese Government does not provide generous donor funding, but instead, concentrates on business investments which include both Chinese State and private sector company investments,” writes the author.
China has managed to boost its economy through its trade policy that includes Forum on China-Africa Co-operation (FOCAC) which has seen a number of African countries benefitting.
FOCAC has resulted in a number of projects intensifying socio-economic development of African states.
Zimbabwe, as one of the countries that is under FOCAC, is a beneficiary of China’s trade policies.
Due to the trade relations that exist between China and Zimbabwe, President Robert Mugabe is on record saying China is doing everything that Africa’s colonisers should have done.
China presents a policy that is different from US’ African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and European Union (EU) Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) which set requirements for certain countries to be illegible.
Following China’s 2006 pledge at the Sino-Africa Summit in Beijing to establish agricultural demonstration centres in Africa, the China-Aid Agricultural Technology Demonstration Centre was constructed at Gwebi Agricultural College in Zimbabwe.
The purpose of the centre is to help the country improve agricultural production and enhance its food security through use of advanced agricultural technology and modern agricultural machinery in the production of high yielding and superior quality food crops.
Since its launch in 2012, more than 200 Government officials drawn from the Ministry of Agriculture and Agritex have undergone skills development training programmes.
China has also played a role in the refurbishment of Kariba, Gwai Shangani and Hwange units seven and eight power stations.
Although focus is on China, Zimbabwe Looking East is a book that chronicles the successes of China and how she has managed to develop from a poor country to a rich country.
It is through the examples that were set by China that Fay encourages Zimbabwe to follow in her quest of looking east.
Her reference of the Ming and Qing dynasties of China is a show of a resilience that China displays towards development.
The mention of the takeover of the country by the nationalist Government of the Kuomintang under Chiang Kaishek and the rise of Communism under Mao Zedong is a reflection of her uniqueness from other states that are shaped by Western ideologies.
“An important aspect of China is its definition of human rights,” writes Fay.
“The US and the EU, jointly known as Western democracies, have made human rights their ideological banner for global hegemony.”
In writing Zimbabwe Looking East, Fay draws various lessons that Zimbabwe should emulate.
Says Fay: “One important lesson for Africa is that China is a united country of 1,3 billion citizens, whereas the African Union comprises 54 countries whose economies are not integrated into each other, but are still closely integrated into those of their colonial master(s).”
Fay says, like China, Zimbabwe should find solutions to control corruption.
Her advice reflects the slackened development rate caused by rampant corruption.
Corruption has remained one of Zimbabwe‘s major problems stalling economic development.
“In China the anti-corruption programme includes both ‘tigers’ , i.e high level officials and politicians, and ‘flies’, i.e corruption by lowly persons.”
Fay stresses that unless serious steps are taken to contain corruption, it can destroy development and progress.
Zimbabwe Looking East does not only focus on economic issues, but the education sector which Fay says must be the foundation of creation of jobs, thus ease the problem of unemployment.
Just like any other issue, the author displays examples of China as the way forward for Zimbabwe’s economic growth.