The Sunday News
Johnsias Mutonhori, Midlands Correspondent
The Minister of State for Midlands Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Owen Ncube has called for the urgent construction and rehabilitation of roads in Shurugwi’s resettlement areas under Tongogara Rural District Council to enhance connectivity and development in line with the focus of the Second Republic.
Minister Ncube made the call during a recent field day tour at Gara Farm.
He emphasised the importance of an efficient road network and the potential for development in the constituency where agriculture and mining are the life-giving arteries of the communities.
He assured local leaders and residents that the Government was fully committed to connecting all parts of Zimbabwe as part of President Mnangagwa’s Vision 2030 which is premised on building an upper-middle-income economy.
Minister Ncube said poor road networks hinder development and run counter to President Mnangagwa’s vision of inclusive progress.
“The Tongogara Rural District Council must prioritise this initiative and I want to assure everyone that the Government is committed to assisting in making this project a success,” said Minister Ncube.
“No one and no place should be left behind in terms of development, as repeatedly emphasised by President Mnangagwa.”
He implored the mining communities to take care of the environment saying they should always ensure that they reclaim the open pits that have become a risk to the communities.
“The livelihoods of people in the constituency primarily depend on mining, but these mining activities have left the area in a deplorable state, with open pits posing risks to the community.
“The communities should ensure that there is sustainable mining activities that protect the environment so that there is continuity in the use of land for other purposes,” he said.
In an interview, Shurugwi South National Assembly member Cde Wilson Mhuri said road rehabilitation and water reticulation were among the top priorities in the constituency.
He said he was in the process of mobilising resources by engaging various stakeholders, including mining companies operating in the area to ensure they attend to roads and water needs.
“We have received approval from the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Cde Ncube to engage councillors, mine owners and companies to improve the state of roads, most of which have become painful to navigate,” said Cde Mhuri.
“Since people were resettled here by the Government, road construction and rehabilitation have lagged.
We are happy that Minister Owen Ncube has assured us that we will receive fuel and a grader to assist us.
“We are also courting mining companies operating in Shurugwi to play their part in developing the area they operate from.”
Apart from roads, Cde Mhuri said there was a need to avail water.
He said Shurugwi South was allocated 70 boreholes under the Presidential Borehole Scheme, adding that there were areas that were surveyed but have not yet been drilled.
“The Government has instructed that we write a list of such boreholes so that we receive assistance and we are doing just that.
“We recently rehabilitated 36 boreholes throughout Shurugwi with the assistance of other stakeholders but the challenge we have here in Ward 23 is that we need new boreholes,” he said.
