The Sunday News
Judith Phiri, Business Reporter
COMMUNITIES have been urged to participate in various community projects such as the Gwayi-Shangani-Bulawayo Water Pipeline Project so that they can benefit from employment opportunities availed by such projects once implemented.
Speaking after a tour of the Gwayi-Shangani-Bulawayo Water Pipeline Project on Friday, the Minister of State for Presidential Affairs and Monitoring Implementation of Government Programmes, Dr Joram Gumbo said community participation in such projects was key.
“It is my hope that members of the local community are participating in the project through employment opportunities in various aspects of its implementation. In my view, community participation promotes a strong sense of ownership for the project. The rapid development that we seek to achieve through the 100 Day Cycle Programme can only be achieved if communities are allowed to actively participate in the projects as opposed to being passive beneficiaries.”
He applauded all the stakeholders for the progress that has been made so far stating that the expectation of Government was that projects should not be implemented to eternity, but within stipulated timeframes. The minister said the Rapid Results Approach will therefore continue to be used as a tool to ensure that projects are implemented timeously.
“During the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) period, Government is making deliberate efforts to ensure that the proportion of the country’s population using secure and potable water sources increases. The strategy is to increase access to potable water from 77,3 percent to at least 90 percent by 2025. Government institutions such as the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) and the District Development Fund (DDF) have been mandated to provide and maintain infrastructure that supports the delivery of potable, clean and safe water to people countrywide,” added Dr Gumbo.
He said the project which is being implemented by Zinwa in partnership with the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) and the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development was being done to the tune of US$600 million funding from Government. The minister said the project was a welcome development for the City of Bulawayo where industry and residents have been affected by water shortages for a long time.
Eenvironmental Management Agency (EMA)
“We had almost reached a point where water was fast becoming a constraint to development in the City of Bulawayo and surrounding areas because no development is possible without water. Going forward, water availability and management must feature very strongly in the development strategies of all sectors.”
He said the Gwayi- Shangani Dam Project and the attendant pipeline, were proposed in 1912, but there was very little progress under the settler and previous administrations. Dr Gumbo said the advent of the Second Republic has seen the project receiving substantial financial support and political will to decisively solve the water problems in Bulawayo and the surrounding communities.
“I have been informed that the pipeline will stretch for a distance of 252 kilometres and that six pumping stations will be installed at various points to facilitate irrigation and other economic activities by communities living in the vicinity of the pipeline.
“I have also been briefed that upon completion, the pipeline will have the capacity to convey in excess of 160 000 mega litres of water to the City of Bulawayo annually. I have also taken note of the challenges that are impeding the smooth implementation of the project. In particular, my attention has been brought to the fact that the contractors were last paid at the beginning of the year and that the advance payments for the contractors and pipe procurement are not being disbursed on time.”
Dr Gumbo said this was a result of Government having to fight the scourge of extortionate pricing by service providers including some contractors, which led to distortions in the economy. He said as a result, slight delays have been experienced in payments to service providers because Government had to carry out due-diligence processes.
