The Sunday News
Dumisani Nsingo, Senior Business Reporter
THE Hwange Local Board’s proposed $50-million Civic Centre Project has started attracting investors albeit at a slow pace.
The board’s engineer, Philip Nguni said a second prospective investor has proposed to put up infrastructure at the 12,5 hectare Civic Centre, which is expected to be Hwange’s first Central Business District.
The Civic Centre was proposed three-years ago as part of the local authority’s drive to attain town status.
Celebration Church was the first investor to purchase two hectares at the proposed site for the setting up of an upmarket church and auditorium.
The religious organisation has already started preliminary work for the construction of their infrastructure.
“We are still looking for investors and we are in touch with one of Zimbabwe’s leading integrated energy companies. They have expressed an interest in setting-up a modern facility at the Civic Centre site. So we just hope that we will finalise this arrangement,” said Eng Nguni.
He, however, could not be drawn to divulge the name of the company but Sunday Business has it on good authority that its one of the country’s leading petroleum establishments, Zuva Petroleum.
The company is said to be planning to put up a fuel service centre, upmarket food court and a kiosk.
“We hope that probably in the next few weeks, we might get a positive response from this energy company.
“We will let you know in due course because we are at a stage where we are discussing in terms of the financial closures for the piece of land, but they are really interested,” said Eng Nguni.
The local authority hopes the beginning of construction work or the setting-up of infrastructure by the two investors would enable it to court more prospective financiers.
“When (infrastructural development) is established we will then get to entice our leading supermarket chains and some banks there.
“We had some consultants who indicated that there are financiers who wanted to also invest, but nothing came out of it. What is positive for now is that we have this petroleum company,” said Eng Nguni.
Hwange has been without a focal point since its founding in 1899, with the apportioning of land being done by big companies namely Hwange Colliery Company Limited (HCCL), Zesa’s subsidiary Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) and the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ).
HCCL has over the past five years destroyed some of its low density houses within the vicinity of its commercial business centre to create space for businesses to set up their structures.
As it stands, Hwange is a local board authority created by the constitution of the country and by statute under the body of the Urban Councils Act, Chapter 29:15.
HLB was established in 1974 and due to multiple administration and land ownership by the three parastatals the local authority only administers and offers service provision to three suburbs namely Mpumalanga, Chibondo and Baobab.
@DNsingo
