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Innocent Ruwende Senior Reporter
Government is in advanced talks with a South African company Mashana Business Enterprises that has offered to set up a Municipal Solid Waste Segregation and Recovery Plant in the country at a cost of US$327 million.

The plant, which relies on all forms of waste is earmarked to create over 21 500 new jobs, produces electricity, diesel, petrol, active charcoal for household and industries, organic fertiliser, animal feedstock and other industrial products which include roofing materials. The company has already been registered in Zimbabwe as Mashana Zimbabwe and will get its funds from Mashana Business Enterprises, its sister company in South Africa.

The trial project will cost an initial US$30 million and the whole project would be implemented at zero cost to the local authority, government and all stakeholders involved. Principal director (urban local authorities) Ms Erica Jones yesterday confirmed the developments saying the project looked “doable”.

“We received a presentation from the company. They were mainly interested in implementing it in the Harare Metropolitan area because of the amount of waste generated in the area. The project looks doable,” she said.

Mashana Zimbabwe representative Mr Raymond Huva said the investors were in the country last week and met with Government before returning to their base in South Africa.

“We have presented the project to Government. We understand Government is still consulting however there are indications that it is already drafting a Memorandum of Understanding which is supposed to be signed between the two parties,” he said.

“If the project gets a nod we will bring in the equipment and the plant should be up and running in a period of five months. We only require land and waste and Government will facilitate that. It is a self-sustaining plant as we will be producing various products for local consumption and export.”

He said Mashana was not looking to tap into revenue that local authorities get from waste but only wanted waste from them.

Government recently adopted the Transitional Stabilisation Programme which seeks among many other issues to create clean and healthy cities.

“We have made waste management our business over years, turning waste into a more lucrative and sustainable operation through scientifically designed, technically supported, industrially implemented tried solutions which ease Government and municipality burden to a regulatory and administrative margin at zero cost on implementation, operating and management initiative,” read part of the document submitted to Government.