Guinea's Mining Minister Mahmoud Thiam told AFP that the junta-backed government signed a deal with the China International Fund (CIF) and Sonangol, an Angolan partner.

The deal comes as the country's military rulers face increasing pressure to relinquish power after troops opened fire on protesters on September 28, killing at least 150 people, according to rights groups. An African Union ultimatum demanding that junta leaders not enter a presidential election due in January expires this Saturday.

China has become a key trade partner with Africa, where it is eager to tap into the continent's mineral and energy resources to help feed its fast-paced economic growth.

It has often come under criticism for signing huge oil and gas deals with countries which have poor human rights records, like Sudan.

While most Guineans live in abject poverty, the west African country has vast mineral resources. It is the world's biggest exporter of bauxite, used to make aluminium, and has important oil, iron, gold and uranium reserves.

"There will be investments in infrastructure projects in the country of between seven billion and nine billion dollars in the next five years depending on the size of the projects," the mines minister said.

The projects could include hydroelectric dams, roads, railways, housing, power plants, water infrastructure, schools and hospitals, he said.

"In exchange (CIF) will become our strategic partner in a mining project that will start with setting up a national mining company in Guinea (...) where all the state's interests in mining projects will be housed."

The money generated by the partnership -- with projects in bauxite, gold, iron and off-shore drilling -- will be used to pay back loans to finance the infrastructure projects, the minister said.

Sonangol will focus on prospecting and exploiting oil resources but will participate financially in the joint-venture created by the Guinean government and CIF.

"We have been in negotiations for the last five months and have been under a lot of pressure from our partners to sign as they had already made financial commitments without the backing of a contract," Thiam said.

"They insisted we sign quickly. The regrettable incident of 28 September came at a time when the transaction was already being negotiated."

According to the United Nations and human rights groups, more than 150 people were killed when troops opened fire on demonstrators at a stadium on September 28.

Human rights groups say 1,200 people were injured, including many women who were raped by soldiers.

The military government says 56 people died and has denied responsibility for the killings.

Demonstrators were protesting against junta leader Moussa Dadis Camara's apparent intention to stand in the election planned in January.

China has defended its cooperation with Guinea, saying it was based on "equality and mutual benefit", according to foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu.

African human rights watchdog Raddho said it was "shocked" by the "clear support" of China for the Guinean junta.

"This is not the first time, it was the same with Darfur (Sudan). China supports African regimes despised by their own people," Raddho spokesman Alioune Tine told AFP.

Share This Article With Planet Earth

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Related Links
Global Trade News

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News