WORLD> Africa
S Africa plans rescue package to Zimbabwe
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-03-17 15:43

HARARE -- South Africa's treasury is considering a financial assistance package to Zimbabwe, according to reports by The Herald on Tuesday.

It is unclear how much South Africa's contribution to the package would be, but Zimbabwe has previously estimated that it needs at least $2billion in the short term, the daily newspaper said.

Speaking after the third session of the Zimbabwe-South Africa Joint Permanent Commission meeting in Victoria Falls on Monday, SA Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said Harare's financial rescue proposal was being considered.

She said the proposal was now with her country's treasury to see what is possible on SA's part. "But, it is also wider than just SA. There are areas where the rest of the Southern African Development Community can chip in," said Minister Dlamini-Zuma.

In March 2007, a SADC Extraordinary Summit held in Tanzania resolved that the regional grouping should help Zimbabwe revive its economy, which has been hamstrung by illegal Western economic sanctions.