Freedom Mupanedemo
Midlands Bureau
Kwekwe City Council has embarked on massive roads rehabilitation programme, using devolution funds and those obtained from the Zimbabwe National Road Administration (Zinara).
The council plans to upgrade six major roads, measuring a combined 80km.
In an interview, the city’s acting town clerk, Dr Lucia Mkhandla said: “We have embarked on roads rehabilitation programme. The exercise is massive; we are using our devolution funds allocations as well as our allocation from Zinara.”
Dr Mkhandla said the plan was to make spruce up and upgrade all the roads before the onset of rains.
“We have realised that every rainy season, our roads develop huge potholes so we want to make sure that before the rains, most our roads will be in good shape,” she said.
The roads being worked on include Mbizo Road, Amaveni Road, Kaku Road, Rail Road and Kaguvi Road.
Dr Mkhandla said she did not have the budget required to rehabilitate the roads.
She said the city was also working on the drainage systems to avoid flooding.
“We are moving towards a modern city in line with Vision 2030 and we can only achieve that when we have an improved road infrastructure.
“To avoid flooding we are also clearing drains to allow free-flow of water during the rainy season,” she said.
President Mnangagwa’s administration has come up with Vision 2030, by which year Zimbabwe should have attained an empowered and prosperous upper middle income economy.
Infrastructure development and job creation top the Second Republic’s priorities.
So far, local authorities in the Midlands Province have received $288 million under devolution funds this year alone and many projects are underway across the province.
Clinics, classroom blocks and roads are being constructed while others are being upgraded. Villagers in remote communities are being provided clean, piped water.