Zimbabwe Turns To New Development Bank For Funding
Zimbabwe intends to join the New Development Bank (NDB), the multilateral bank set up by the BRICS states, to expand the country’s sources of capital for infrastructure development.
This was revealed by Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube in the United Kingdom (UK) during an interview with CGTN Africa.
CGTN Africa is the African division of China Global Television Network, the English-language news channel run by Chinese State broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV).
Zimbabwe is failing to access funding from some multilateral financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) due to its huge external debt.
The external debt, expected to be roughly US$17.5 billion including arrears, according to Business Weekly, has resulted in foreign investors shunning Zimbabwe due to its high-risk profile. Said Ncube:
We have made contact with the management; we have made contact with the current shareholders for us to progress that initiative.
We look forward one day to then being accepted into the BRICS bank. We are trying to expand sources of capital, we are trying to expand various platforms where we can source additional capital for development.
What we want to achieve is just (an) additional source of capital for infrastructure development and for the development agenda; to move the country forward.
We recognise that we have to keep expanding sources of capital and the BRICS bank is one such source of capital.
The New Development Bank, formerly referred to as the BRICS Development Bank, is a multilateral development bank established by the BRICS states.
It was established to mobilise funds for infrastructure in emerging markets and the developing world.
The NDB originally served the five BRICS countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — and has now added Bangladesh, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.
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