AP News, February 5th, 2007
Chinese president Hu Jintao brought his eight-nation African tour Monday to Namibia, a sparsely populated, mineral-rich desert country that hopes to benefit from an influx of Chinese investment and tourists.
Drummers and dancers in traditional dress greeted Hu at the airport. Chinese and Namibian flags and photos of Hu and Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba decorated the main highway from Windhoek's airport in preparation for the 24-hour visit.
"I hope that my visit will enhance mutual understanding and trust, strengthen the bond of traditional friendship and advance the friendly relations and cooperation between China and Namibia," Hu said in a written statement.
Hu arrived from Zambia, where he inaugurated an economic cooperation zone designed to draw $800 million in mining investment and create 60,000 jobs in the Copperbelt province.
Hu has used his tour, which also included a stop in Sudan, to cement China's increasing economic and political ties and its fast-growing role as a foreign donor throughout the continent.
In Windhoek, Hu was expected to hold talks with Pohamba, meet Namibia's former president Sam Nujoma and attend a state banquet.
Pohamba, who became president in March 2005, has actively promoted cooperation with China. Trade in the first 11 months of 2006 amounted to $240 million, an increase of 103 percent from the previous year.
Namibia, which has a population of only about 2 million people, is rich in diamonds and minerals such as uranium, zinc and cobalt.
It has a long-standing friendship with China, since the Asian country backed Namibia's struggle for independence, achieved in March 1990. Nujoma has visited China 13 times, and Pohamba already has been twice, further cementing ties.
The Beijing government has conducted a number of education and health projects, including financing primary schools in rural areas and exchange programs for Namibian students and Chinese professionals.
China also has been involved in a number of construction projects such as the drilling of wells, the building of low-cost housing and a children's recreation center.
There has been an increasing number of Chinese enterprises operating in Namibia and Hu is expected to meet with Chinese business leaders before leaving on Tuesday for South Africa.
