THE historic partnership between Zimbabwe’s number one business publication, The Financial Gazette, and China’s top English language newspaper, China Daily, was officially launched in Harare yesterday.
This came after subscribers of the Pink Paper — as the FinGaz is popularly referred to by its loyal readers — started receiving a copy of China Daily’s Global Weekly with their favourite paper, as from last week Thursday.
Since its launch in 1981, China Daily has grown to become the East Asian giant’s leading English paper, with a total print, online and mobile readership of more than 350 million. It plays a vital role in providing insight into the world’s second largest economy.
Speaking at the launch function, the minister of Information, Jenfan Muswere, hailed the partnership as an “important milestone” for the local media industry, adding that this was also “a shining example of the strong and enduring relations” between Zimbabwe and the People’s Republic of China.
These relations, he further emphasised, were deeply rooted in “shared values of sovereignty, mutual respect and development-focused cooperation”.
He also commended the Jester Media Services Group (JMS), the parent company of The Financial Gazette, for spearheading the collaboration, while also applauding China Daily for recognising Zimbabwe as a key strategic partner.
On his part, Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Zhou Ding, also described the partnership as “a strategic alliance between two renowned media institutions that embody an enduring spirit of friendship and shared purpose that unites our two nations”.
He added that media cooperation had long been a vital thread in “the rich tapestry” of the two countries’ economic and cultural relations. JMS Group chief executive, Pilate Machadu, described the decision to partner with China Daily and African Channel Distribution (ACD) on this key initiative as “easy and logical”.
“China is not just a reliable and long-standing friend of Zimbabwe, it is a crucial trading and investment partner for our country that is intimately involved in helping to build and revive vital local infrastructure that includes railways, airports and energy projects.
“Contributing to the deepening of ties between Zimbabwe and China, as we are doing, will mean even stronger economic and cultural links between the two countries, as well as more opportunities and access for Zimbabwean companies to huge Chinese markets, affordable goods, technology and machinery, among other things.
“Over and above this, China is a good economic model for Zimbabwe, given its impressive and rapid development from being a low-income to middle-income country a few decades ago, as well as our own quests in this regard,” Machadu said.
“Our partnership with China Daily and ACD is a perfect match that ticks all the right boxes. “In this regard, and as Zimbabwe’s fastest growing, commercially sustainable and arguably most important media house, we at JMS are exploring more such win-win relationships with Chinese organisations and others going forward, in all our areas of business that encompass broadcasting, print, online and events.
“We are doing this as we continue to ramp up both the range and quality of our product offerings, and as we move to consolidate our vantage position in the local market,” Machadu added. Apart from The Financial Gazette, JMS also publishes Zimbabwe’s most influential newspaper, the Daily News, as well as the Daily News On Sunday.
The diversified media house also owns the country’s leading and first independent national television station, 3Ktv, as well as popular e-newsletter Business Live, a printing company and a plethora of magazines and digital assets.
• To subscribe to the print and e-paper editions of The Financial Gazette, the Daily News and the Daily News On Sunday, please contact us at: Telephone number — +263 242 781571/7 Email — mapanzurec@dailynews.co.zw WhatsApp — 0772 387 955