As Africa and the Middle East undergo an unprecedented construction boom, mounting evidence points to widespread labour exploitation by certain multinational contractors, with Zhongmei Engineering Group Limited (Zhongmei) repeatedly flagged for serious labour rights violations. In Ghana, 2025 investigations by the BWI-affiliated General Construction Manufacturing and Quarries Workers Union (GCMQWU) found that roughly 282 workers on the Kasoa–Winneba Road dualisation project, despite its multi-million-dollar scale, were employed without written contracts, lacked adequate personal protective equipment, and worked in unsafe conditions resulting in frequent accidents, while injured workers were left to shoulder their own medical expenses and lose pay, underscoring a blatant disregard for worker welfare and national labour laws.

These abuses are not isolated to Ghana but reflect a broader, systemic business model. In Namibia, following a fatal accident on the Airport Road Project in October 2024, the Ministry of Labour ordered Zhongmei to halt operations after inspections revealed that untrained workers were performing hazardous tasks without supervision or protective gear. The Metal and Allied Namibian Workers Union (MANWU) played a key role in exposing these violations. In Kenya, Zhongmei faced multiple court cases involving unlawful dismissals, verbal terminations, and denial of terminal benefits, with courts repeatedly ruling against the company. Complaints brought forward by the Kenya Building, Construction, Timber, Furniture and Industries Employees Union (KBCTFIEU) demonstrated a clear pattern of misconduct. Additionally, in Zambia and Uganda, the African Development Bank previously sanctioned Zhongmei with a 12-month conditional non-debarment for fraudulent bidding practices.

In response, the BWI Global Network on Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), together with the Global MNCs Network are systematically documenting these violations and escalating them into a coordinated, multi-country investigation. By leveraging the social and environmental safeguards of major international financiers—including the World Bank, AfDB, and European Investment Bank—the Network is transforming oversight mechanisms into concrete tools for worker protection. Recent actions, including a case involving KfW Development Bank in East Africa, signal growing momentum toward accountability.

BWI warned contractors and global financiers that continued engagement with Zhongmei without an independently audited Corrective Action Plan constitutes complicity in labour exploitation. For workers in Ghana and across the continent, international pressure is no longer optional; it is urgent and overdue.