The Sunday News
Munyaradzi Musiiwa, Midlands Bureau
PLATINUM miner Unki Mine has completed the construction of 365 housing units out of a targeted 956 for its workers under the first phase of its housing project at Impali Park in Shurugwi.
It has also constructed and commissioned a state-of-the-art primary school for the workers’ children.
Addressing journalists during a media tour in Shurugwi last week, Unki Mine human resources manager Mr Antony Chadhliwa said the Anglo-American Platinum company had spent $151 million on the construction of the 365 housing units that have already been commissioned.
Mr Chadhliwa said the company was targeting constructing 956 houses that would be completed in different phases and were already at different stages of construction.
He said the employees had started living in the houses.
“As Unki Mine we embarked on a housing project in 2011 where we want to construct 951 houses. To date we have constructed 365 houses. We completed 321 houses in 2016 and 44 this year.
“Our employees have already moved into the houses. We are going to complete the remaining units in different phases. The company has so far used $151 million in the housing project since it’s commencement in 2011,” he said.
Mr Chadhliwa said the company had also constructed a primary school for the workers and the surrounding communities.
Unki Mine invested more than $2,5 million in the construction and equipping Impali Primary School that opened for its first intake in January.
The double-storey school has a total of 16 classrooms for two classes per stream from Early Childhood Development to Grade Seven.
The school has so far enrolled 311 pupils against the school’s capacity of 600.
Unki Mine has serviced 1 400 stands and handed over 141 serviced stands to Shurugwi Town Council as part of the 10 percent commonage. Shurugwi Town Council is set to generate more than $30 million.
“Our main aim was to provide decent accommodation for our employees who were staying in Gweru. We believe this would reduce distance and fatigue caused by travelling to and from work. The moving of employees to Impali started in November last year,” said Mr Chadhliwa.
