Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe on Thursday applauded the Chinese for their contribution to Zimbabwe's economy through infrastructure development.

The Chinese are constructing a 300-roomed five-star hotel and shopping mall in Belvedere, a project worth over 200 million dollars.

Mugabe told journalists after touring the construction site that the investment was "a real contribution to development."

"Its a massive project, I had no idea what size it would be and even what shape it will take but I was aware that our Chinese friends are building. The attraction here was the fact that there is also Chinese architecture next door and the two merge in the environment very artistically and aesthetically, but this is very massive and it's a real contribution to development and we welcome that," Mugabe said.

"It is very impressive indeed and we are grateful for this contribution to our development," he added.

The project is next to the Chinese-built National Sports Stadium. The hotel and mall project is being undertaken by Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Corporation (AFECC), a Chinese company.

AFECC chairman Jiang Qingde told Mugabe the shopping mall would be completed at the end of next month. "This project is an investment of AFECC, a monument of Sino-Zimbabwe co-operation," he said.

He said the mall, an investment worth 84 million dollars and occupying 62,000 square meters, will include retail outlets, an amusement park, parking and staff houses. These would be completed by the end of October. Construction of the mall commenced in March.

The hotel project will cost an estimated 150 million dollars and will occupy 50,000 square meters. Building of the hotel will commence once the shopping mall has been completed.

Jiang said the project would be a unique display of Chinese architecture and be among one of the best in Africa.

The hotel and mall project had created at least 700 jobs.