The Sunday Mail
ZIMBABWE and Brazil are working at deepening bilateral relations and exploring areas of cooperation. Our Correspondent WALLACE RUZVIDZO (WR) sat down with newly appointed Brazilian Ambassador to Zimbabwe, His Excellency Vilmar Rogeiro Coutinho Junior (VC), to discuss the current state of relations between the two countries.
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WR: Ambassador, what are the major areas of focus as you begin your mission to Zimbabwe?
VC: I arrived in the country at the end of July, and I am here to ensure that bilateral relations between Brazil and Zimbabwe are kept at a good standard. Brazil and Zimbabwe have very good relations. We are two friendly countries, so my main mission is to ensure this continues.
WR: What was your perception of Zimbabwe before and after coming here?
VC: I already knew a lot about Zimbabwe. About 20 years ago, I worked at our embassy in South Africa and had the opportunity of visiting Zimbabwe, so it’s a country I already had an idea about. It’s very similar to South Africa.
When I arrived here for my mission, I found more or less what I was expecting to find. The only thing I hadn’t noticed before is how open and kind Zimbabwean people are. For the record, I actually made a deliberate decision to come to Zimbabwe.
WR: Why did you choose Zimbabwe specifically?
VC: This is my sixth mission in Africa. I was previously in Algeria, South Africa, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali, Sao Tome and Principe, as well as Central Africa. Also, I lived in Angola as a child when my father worked there. He was working for an American company.
So I have rich knowledge about Southern Africa. I had the option to go to either Central Asia, Central America or the Caribbean. My last posting was in Central Africa and when I finished my tenure, I specifically asked to be posted here because I knew the country and thought it would be a good idea for me to come here. My predecessor was about to retire, so I knew that the vacancy was open and I was fortunate enough to have my wish fulfilled.
WR: How are the trade relations between Zimbabwe and Brazil?
VC: Trade, unfortunately, is at a low level between the two countries. It is irregular, with many ups and downs. We had a peak year when our trade was above US$10 million, but, generally, it stands at around US$3 million annually.
Trade is mainly concentrated on Brazilian exports to Zimbabwe; very little is imported from Zimbabwe to Brazil. Brazil’s exports to Zimbabwe are agricultural machinery, paper and paper board and some chemical products. We mainly import minerals and tobacco from Zimbabwe, but, as I said, there is a lot of imbalance.
I believe there is a lot of scope for trade figures to be increased on both sides. That is one thing I will be working on in the next few years to see if we can increase bilateral trade considerably.
WR: What are the possible areas of cooperation between the two countries?
VC: In the agriculture sector, we are working together because the sector presents more opportunities for bilateral cooperation for the economies of both countries. In addition, we are working together in mining.
Also, Brazil is giving assistance and technical support to Zimbabwe to strengthen meat processing with a view to export. Another initiative is that Brazil is giving expertise to strengthen the cotton sector in Zimbabwe, also with a view to export. One more interesting project is flower exports.
The idea is to have Brazil counting on Zimbabwe’s expertise in the export of flowers. I mentioned this to President Mnangagwa during my presentation of credentials and he said because of sanctions, trade is low but we have the expertise, so it will be in the interest of both countries for Zimbabwe to export more flowers.
WR: What do Zimbabwe and Brazil share in common on the socio-economic front?
VC: Quite a lot. Our economies have similar structures. There is a big difference in size of Brazil’s economy and population compared to Zimbabwe, but the two economies are similar in terms of structures. They have very strong agriculture and mining sectors.
The two countries are also characterised by difficult social problems like income inequality and poverty among the vulnerable. Because we have so many similarities, then obviously there is a lot of scope for us to cooperate, increase our trade relations and enhance political relations.
I am sure that in the next few years I will be exploiting a lot of opportunities to increase our cooperation in all these areas and on how we can tackle certain social problems.
WR: President Mnangagwa has said Zimbabwe is open for business, how is Brazil responding to this?
VC: That is exactly what President Mnangagwa pointed out when we met and I see that there is a lot of scope to increase trade and investments.
We welcome this as Brazil and we will help to get Brazilian companies to invest in Zimbabwe. During my tenure, I will do my best to enhance partnerships between the two countries.
