Shunned by western governments and banks due to its failure to repay loans, Zimbabwe has signed an agreement with a South African company to fix its broken road system, Reuters reports in IndependentOnline.

Movement for Democratic Change, the opposition party to President Robert Mugabe’s ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), has agreed to a $400-million deal with Neo Capital of South Africa to run the project for 30 years, according to state-owned newspaper, The Herald.

The Harare government will set up a joint venture firm — Harare Roads Development Company — with Neo Capital, the report said.

Zimbabwe’s roads are dilapidated, the Herald reported Monday.

The deal will be one of the largest infrastructure investments in a country shunned by
Western governments and funding institutions such as the World Bank because of its failure to repay billions of dollars of debt, Reuters reports.

Johannesburg-based Neo Capital CEO Vivien Natasen was unavailable for comment, the report said.

According to the minutes of a Harare council meeting, “Neo would contribute $400 million for the project. The Harare Roads Development Company would get its revenue from vehicle licence and billboard activities,” the Herald reported.

Harare Mayor Bernard Manyenyeni and his officials were unavailable for comment, according to the report.

President Robert Mugabe’s cash-strapped government says it needs $27 billion – more than twice the size of its economy – to fund a five-year plan to improve basic services and
rebuild the country’s infrastructure.