"I was really stunned by the scales and efficiency of these Chinese-run businesses in Harare," said Yuan Nansheng, the Chinese ambassador to Zimbabwe, after his brief tour of local Chinese business people on Monday, with the advent of Chinese traditional Spring Festival, the Lunar New Year's Day, which falls on February 7 this year.

Yuan said he was happy that so many Chinese business people have remained in this southern African country even in the hardest times it faces.

"I appreciate your great contribution to the economic development of Zimbabwe," he told the owner of a bicycle assembly factory in the industrial area in Harare, who only gave his second name as Xie.

The middle-aged Chinese man, who started his business in Harare about three years ago, has also opened factories and shops in the neighboring Zambia.

According to Xie, his business is accounting for 80 percent of bicycle market share in Zimbabwe and 50 percent in Zambia with an employment of 200 local people.    

For outsiders who have never visited this southern African country, Zimbabwe seems to be terrible country to invest in with world's highest inflation, which reportedly shot up to 26,000 percent in November 2007.

Indeed, media' negative reports of the gloomy economic situation of the country and the severe sanctions by some Western countries and international institutions have scared away many international investors, including those from China.

However, there are hundreds of Chinese businessmen like Xie who operates successfully in this country despite the challenges.