JOHANNESBURG - Qatari investment firm Al Mansour Holding has pledged $70-billion in investments across four southern Africa countries in a 10-day tour, a move analysts call strategic as US funding retreats from the continent.
Group leader and royal family member Sheikh Mansour bin Jabor bin Jassim Al Thani has met the leaders of Botswana, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe to sign commitments of major financing for projects spanning energy, agriculture, tourism and mining.
In Maputo this week, he signed a $20-billion partnership agreement with President Daniel Chapo aimed at supporting government initiatives including in health and education, the Mozambique presidency announced.
Days earlier, across the border in Zimbabwe, his company committed to opening its purse to the tune of $19-billion, including $500-million for a hydro-electricity project, the government said.
It has also pledged $19-billion for Zambia, reportedly among the biggest bilateral pacts in the country's history, and $12 billion in Botswana, the countries announced.
Botswana President Duma Boko said the deal -- worth more than half the diamond-rich country's gross domestic product -- had been "quietly" thrashed out for months, vowing: "This is just the beginning."
It was particularly welcome as Boko had to declare a public health emergency on August 25 after hospitals ran out of essential medicines due to depleted government coffers.
The UAE has also been calling, with Angola signing 44 agreements worth $6.5-billion during a visit by President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed on August 25.
Details of the deals, such as timelines and what may be expected in return, have not been made public, and the huge sums involved have raised some questions.