Hope rises of building foundation for future

While waiting in line at a pizza restaurant in Harare, I was asked by a local resident named Simon how popular Huawei cellphones were in China. He asked this as he showed me a new Huawei P8 bought locally, which he said was the "coolest phone" he had ever used.

He then named some Chinese brands that are well known in his country, including the home appliance producer Hisense, vehicle manufacturer FAW, and Sinoma, a Chinese cement maker that even many Chinese don't know. He said he wants to see more companies like these open factories in his country so he can find a job.

His words were a sign of the popularity of Chinese commodities in Zimbabwe and the robust trade relations between the two countries, but they also show the desire for industrialization, which has been the hottest topic on this continent during recent years.