12/09/2026
Zimbabwe has invited Chinese technology firms and global investors to partner the country in developing smart logistics, green data centres, cross-border e-commerce and digital financial services as it accelerates efforts to build a competitive digital economy.
Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Deputy Minister Mercy Dinha told delegates on Wednesday while addressing the Forum on Digital Trade Developments and DGF Annual Meeting held at the Beijing Shougang International Convention and Exhibition Centre on the sidelines of the 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS).
Dinha said Zimbabwe was positioning itself as a strategic gateway into Southern and Central Africa, leveraging its geographical position in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and opportunities presented by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
“Zimbabwe sits at the strategic heart of the Southern African Development Community. Through the African Continental Free Trade Area, which creates a single market of 1.3 billion people, Zimbabwe serves as a natural digital and logistical gateway into Southern and Central Africa,” she said.
She said Zimbabwe was seeking partnerships in four strategic areas: smart logistics and e-commerce hubs, green data centres and cloud computing, cross-border e-commerce and digital financial services.
She said investment in smart last-mile logistics centres, automated cold-chain facilities and regional fulfilment hubs would help Zimbabwe service markets beyond its borders.
The Government is also seeking investment in solar-powered hyperscale data centres, which she said could take advantage of Zimbabwe’s abundant solar radiation and skilled technical workforce.
On e-commerce, Deputy Minister Dinha said Zimbabwe wanted to deepen linkages between local producers and major Chinese digital platforms, creating direct business-to-consumer and business-to-business channels for agricultural, horticultural, manufactured and creative products.
She said Zimbabwe also sought to expand interoperable and compliant cross-border digital payment systems to reduce transaction costs for traders, simplify duty payments and promote financial inclusion.
Deputy Minister Dinha said the country’s digital transformation agenda was firmly anchored in Vision 2030, which seeks to transform Zimbabwe into an empowered and prosperous upper-middle-income society.
“Under our National Development Strategy, digital transformation and environmental sustainability are recognised as the core horizontal enablers of all economic growth,” she said.
Deputy Minister Dinha said the Government was modernising Zimbabwe’s legal and regulatory environment to create a secure and predictable ecosystem for digital trade.
She cited the rollout of the country’s E-Commerce Legal Framework and Data Protection Regulations as key measures aimed at strengthening consumer protection, data security and regulatory certainty for digital businesses.
Zimbabwe was also digitising trade processes and working towards greater adoption of electronic trade documentation, including Electronic Bills of Lading and Digital Certificates of Origin, while strengthening automated cross-border payment compliance systems.
Deputy Minister Dinha said bridging the digital divide remained critical if developing countries were to benefit meaningfully from the digital economy.
