Blessing Nduku
The City of Gweru (CoG) has taken a major step towards improving its infrastructure with the commencement of a comprehensive road upgrade project aiming at improving road conditions around the city, as well as reducing the risk of accidents and enhancing safety for motorists and pedestrians.
Speaking at the recent Council meeting held at the Mayor’s Parlour, Councillor Violet Mutusva, who is a member of the council’s environment committee, stated that the Council has allocated funds for road repairs and updated the council on the progress.
“We have noticed that most of our roads are damaged during the rainy season and fixing them during that season is disastrous; therefore, the rains should find us with better roads to avoid flooding and accidents.
“The CoG received funds from the Zimbabwe National Road Authority (ZINARA) towards the repairing of roads inside and around Gweru.
The work is set to start this week, going onwards before the rainy season ahead.
The council has allocated funds for road repairs and maintenance and work is currently underway to fix potholes, cracks and other damages.“Gweru has received 13% of its fuel disbursement from ZINARA.
In November 2024, Gweru ZIG$5 million from ZINARA for road maintenance, which was used for routine road maintenance including patching, regrading and clearing drainage systems in the CBD.
The roads were fixed during the rainy season, and due to the heavy rains, the efforts were washed away.
Meanwhile, CoG is embarking on an ambitious project to overhaul its ageing water and sanitation infrastructure.
CoG Assistant Finance Director Mr Owen Masimba provided a detailed analysis of the city’s water demand, treatment capacity and sanitation.
Gweru’s water infrastructure was commissioned in 1957, and it no longer meets the demand of the growing population.
This is one of the reasons why we are implementing water rationing even though Gwenhoro is currently overflowing.
“Our water infrastructure, which was commissioned a very long time ago, is struggling to meet the demands of a rapidly growing population, which is now exceeding 300,000 residents.
Assistant Director Masimba added that the City’s water treatment plant is currently pump 17 megalitres per day which is inefficient and is leading to penalties from EMA.
“We are also prioritising the upgrade of our sewage treatment plant, whose inefficiency has led to repeated penalties from the Environmental Management Agency (EMA).
Mr Masimba went on to say that investing in modern, efficient and resilient water infrastructure is a fundamental step towards achieving national development goals and improving residents’ quality of life.
The City Council hopes that the planned improvements will enhance supply efficiency, reduce wastage and improve sanitation services for Gweru residents.
