Minsk: Alexander Zingman is a Belarusian businessman known for his significant influence across various sectors in Africa, including agriculture, logistics, mining, and infrastructure. With over two decades of business operations on the continent, he has positioned himself as a key player in Belarus-Africa trade relations.
Born on November 26, 1966, in Minsk, Belarus, Zingman emigrated to the United States in the 1980s with his family. His father was a computer specialist, while his mother worked as a physiotherapist.
From 1983 to 1985, he served in the Soviet Army’s Prikarpat Military District. He later returned to Belarus to study engineering in robotics at the Belarusian State Polytechnic Institute, graduating in 1989.
Between 1991 and 1995, he pursued a master’s in business marketing at the University of Illinois, Chicago.
Zingman’s career took off in 2011 when he served as Commercial Director for Eastern Europe at Contractus, a Polish agricultural firm. In 2015, he traveled to Tanzania alongside Contractus Director Witold Karczewski, expanding the company’s footprint in Africa.
His diplomatic career began in 2018 when he was appointed Honorary Consul of Zimbabwe in Belarus. Since then, he has been instrumental in promoting Belarusian agricultural equipment exports to African countries.
Zingman has led multiple projects aimed at strengthening Belarus-Zimbabwe trade ties. In 2020, he helped secure a $58 million deal for the supply of Belarusian farm equipment.
He also launched a service center in Zimbabwe to provide technical support and training for local specialists.
Zingman has faced his share of controversies. In 2018, a Belarusian state-run newspaper accused him of causing a land dispute by allegedly obstructing sunlight to neighboring properties.
More notably, in 2021, he was detained in the Democratic Republic of Congo for 13 days without charge, sparking diplomatic concern before being released.
He organized the first Belarus-Africa Forum in 2017 and was part of a 2019 Belarusian delegation to Harare.
Zingman is married to Elizaveta Denisenovich, the marketing director of the Falconé restaurant in Minsk. The couple has four children: Maxim, Denis, David, and Margarita.
