China’s premier to visit Zambia after 28 years amid economic recovery

Zambia will this week host a Chinese premier for the first time in 28 years, a landmark visit that comes as the copper-rich nation emerges from a bruising financial crisis and positions itself for renewed investment.

Beijing, eager to secure access to Zambia’s commodities and expand the market for its exporters, is moving quickly to deepen ties, according to Reuters.

China remains Zambia’s largest official creditor, with $5.7 billion owed, and has long showcased the country as a model participant in President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative. Beijing also wants to highlight how its support can help African nations rebuild after financial distress.

Premier Li Qiang’s arrival in Lusaka on Wednesday marks the latest phase in China’s push to reinforce its presence just as Europe and the United States seek to position themselves as alternative partners following Zambia’s $13.4 billion debt workout.

With a more sustainable repayment plan now in place, Zambia is courting investment to expand mining output, upgrade infrastructure, and strengthen industrial capacity. The World Bank forecasts growth of 6.5% next year, outpacing the country’s 5% average over the past two decades.

China is also moving ahead with a major refurbishment of the Tazara Railway—a project widely viewed as Beijing’s counter to the U.S.- and EU-backed Lobito Corridor.

The original Tazara line, financed by China in the 1970s, was designed to connect Zambia’s copper belt to Tanzania’s east coast. Its revival comes as Western-backed initiatives expand routes through Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The visit also coincides with African governments shifting away from post-pandemic borrowing toward investment-driven strategies. Zambia’s debt restructuring was prolonged, lasting three and a half years, partly due to the sheer number of Chinese creditors involved, analysts say, which complicated negotiations.

Over the past two decades, Chinese companies have invested roughly $6 billion in Zambia, according to American Enterprise Institute data, with nearly all of it funnelled into the metals sector.