Census results, time now to act

26 May, 2014 - 20:05 0 Views

The Sunday News

THE results of the 2012 census are out and with all their interesting and depressing findings it is time to put these to use for the good of the country.
The results came out during an interesting phase in Zimbabwe when Government and almost everyone is trying to see the take-off of the country’s economic blueprint Zim Asset.

The economic blueprint has a number of areas ready for the taking – more like everything for everyone – and with a clear picture of the population distribution it only makes the implementation of the document easier and maybe faster.

The greatest potential we have is a manageable population of just above 13 million, according to census results, supported by many enabling factors that range from a high literacy rate to the abundant natural resources, among others.

Like what has been done on the counting of people, Government must invest in counting and evaluation of our natural resources so that we can finally walk tall knowing that we are on our way to Canaan.

But even before this natural resources “census” can be done, the real census is rich in relevant information which can be used to map the direction the economy will take.

Those figures, unpalatable though they might look among some quarters, are also a clear indication of the level of economic activity in the country and it becomes easy for authorities to see which areas need urgent attention.

For many years, there has been talk of the de-industrialisation of Bulawayo and census figures provide probably the most credible information on the extent the company closures have affected the city.

A lot of figures have been thrown around to justify de-industrialisation but most of them were based on estimates.
We have heard of nearly 100 companies closing or relocating and rendering more than 20 000 people jobless.

The figures have not been fully substantiated but just the population of Bulawayo tells the whole story.
The city or rather the metropolitan province has the lowest number of people at 653 000.

In addition to the thinning population, out of the 430 972 people aged 15 years and above, 61 percent of whom are economically active, a staggering 27 percent of them are unemployed. This is against the national jobless average of 11 percent.

This shows that even the few people in Bulawayo are not employed.
It’s a city of few people, with a majority being unemployed.

This is enough an indicator to send those in policy making offices to ensure that they quickly act to address this.
A quick perusal of the Zim Asset talks about the issue of setting Special Economic Zones. It is gratifying to note that Bulawayo is among those cities that have been earmarked for this project.

If there were people doubting this, then empirical evidence in the form of the census results must make them change their mind and treat the situation in the second capital with the urgency it deserves.

This is not to say Bulawayo is the only city facing problems, but the results show different trends for different areas which are subject to interpretation and action.

These census results are an economic pointer. Many people were doubting the success of the land reform but the results clearly show that many people are now living in the countryside and one of the main attractions must be agriculture.

The growth of the tobacco industry is testimony to this.
The results show that  67 percent of the population now live in the rural areas while 33 percent live in the urban areas compared to 65 percent (urban) and 35 percent (rural) in 2002.

Some critics might want to see this as an indication of some sort of melt-down of towns but the fact remains the same that migrating from town to rural areas even after losing your job, does not take away your productive capability.

With agriculture being the main economic activity in rural areas, coupled with the Government’s programme to avail more land to the people, it shows that many people must be now depending on agriculture for  subsistence.

It further indicates that more focus from the top to bottom must be put on agriculture to cater for this growing population.
More importantly it calls for a complete developmental focus to channel more resources to these areas.

In the past the Government introduced concepts such as gowth points but because of economic challenges the country went through, they never really achieved its intended targets.

These census results are just a reminder that such concepts must be revisited to cater for this large number of people.
It is also not a secret that infrastructure in most rural areas is not up to scratch.

Many areas are inaccessible due to either lack of roads or the poor state they are in.
This is causing a number of problems for this huge population as some are walking many kilometres to get transport. Some transport operators have also been withdrawing from these areas citing poor roads.

Most people still have difficulties accessing proper health facilities because of inadequate clinics and hospitals.
The few clinics in these areas are ill-equipped both in terms of staff and infrastructure to effectively deal with health problems.

Schools lack basic infrastructure resulting in some qualified teachers shunning the areas and compromising the quality of education.
Results of public examinations have been indicating this trend for many years.

Companies too must change mindsets and follow the people where they are. There is still a thinking among many business people of targeting towns but the census results clearly show where business can flourish.

Business such as those in retail and mobile telephone operations must start looking at these areas for investment opportunities.
There are a number of many other needs for rural populations, offering more opportunities for business especially those with foresight.

However, more importantly the figures show that Government must channel more resources to where the people are.
Census results are now there and the hope is that they will clearly guide this country on how it can fairly distribute its resources and improve the lives of its people.

Comments, contributions are welcome at [email protected] or SMS/WhatsApp to 0777390875

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