Belarus to build 'secret' plant in Kenya
Lukashenka's "wallet" Zingman, Kenyan Trade Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria and BPC head Aliaksei Skraha / twitter.com/HonMoses_Kuria
Belarusian Potash Company (BPC) will build a fertilizer plant in Kenya. The project is worth 39 billion Kenyan shillings (about 277 million dollars). The Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for Trade Moses Kuria and BPC CEO Aliaksei Skraha reached the agreement on June 6.
"The Belarusian Potash Company has committed to establish the first African fertilizer production plant in the Dongo Kund Special Economic Zone," Kuria wrote.
For some reason, the Belarusian state media did not mention this, although the Kenyan delegation's visit to Belarus was covered.
Euroradio found out the details of the deal and about the businessman from the Lukashenka's inner circle, whose business in Africa has been linked to corruption and even death.
What do BPC and Kenya get?
Kenya will get its own plant built with BPC's money. In return, BPC apparently wants to expand its presence in Africa.
"We have also agreed to explore the possibility of establishing trading companies in each country within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to expand African markets and support the needs of the growing agricultural sector," Kuria writes.
The AfCFTA includes most countries on the African continent.
"The Belarusian potash company covers 50 percent of Kenya's potash needs and its establishment in Kenya will make a big difference not only in Kenya but in Africa," Kuria added.
People with guns: who was sent to negotiate?
The people promoting Belarusian potash in Africa are not simple. This is the head of the Belarusian potash company Aliaksei Skraha. Until March 2022 he was the head of Belspetsvneshtekhnika. It deals with the development, production, modernization and export of weapons and military equipment.
Skraha probably knows Africa quite well, as Belarus has been actively supplying weapons there. Raman Halouchanka, who was the chairman of the State Military-Industrial Committee, spoke about this in 2019.
Suddenly, Aliaksandr Zingman was at the meeting on potash.
Officially, he's involved in supplying Belarusian agricultural machinery to Africa. But agricultural machinery is trivial compared to Zingman's real activities.
