The Sunday News
Vusumuzi Dube, Online News Editor
THE Government has over the past few months been scrutinising budgets from all local authorities in the country, with the engagement of different experts so as to ensure residents are not short changed by the councils.
Councils handed over their budgets for 2024 to the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works in December last year but indications are that the Ministry was yet to approve them. Explaining the delay in the approval process, the Ministry’s Director of Communication and Advocacy, Mr Gabriel Masvora, told Sunday News that the Ministry had adopted a more stringent and thorough process in their approval.
“We have engaged a number of experts in the review process of these budgets, inclusive of accountants, who are thoroughly going through these budgets, so that we make sure that residents are not short changed by their councils. So far, we have approved some of the budgets but the process is still ongoing and we expect the process to be completed soon, we shall be releasing a detailed statement , explaining the whole process and stating which budgets have been approved and those that have been rejected,” said Mr Masvora.
The revelations by the Ministry come at a time when Bulawayo councillors last month attempted to have residents pay their rates using a 80 percent foreign currency and 20 percent local currency ratio. The move was immediately stopped by the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion who deemed it illegal, telling the local authority through the Local Government Ministry that residents had the option to pay in any currency of their choice, including the local currency.
Mr Masvora, said while he could not comment on individual councils’ budgets, the necessary information would be made public once the process was completed.
“For now, I cannot really state the performance of individual councils but all that information will be provided when we get the detailed report from the experts that are scrutinising the budgets. All that information will be made public,” said the Ministry’s spokesperson.
Bulawayo councillors last year approved a budget of US$264 064 416, which was a standstill budget without any tariff adjustments. According to the budget, US$167 462 100 will be the revenue budget, while US$96 602 316 will be the capital budget.
In terms of the revenue income, 27 percent (US$45 million) is projected to come via assessment rates, 25 percent (US$42 million) from water and 12 percent (US$19.7 million) from property tax. The proposed 2024 revenue expenditure will see US$80 million (30 percent) go towards salaries, US$96.6 million (37 percent) to capital projects, US$59.8 million will be directed to general expenses, while US$27.4 million (10 percent) will go towards maintenance.
In terms of average bills,ward one will pay the range of US$110 a month, ward two; US$48, ward three; US$70, ward four; US$98, ward five; US$70, ward six; US$64, ward seven and 13; US$25, ward eight, nine, 14, 16, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 and 28; US$29 and wards 10, 11, 12, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 28 and 29 will pay an average bill of US$26.
