By Byron Mutingwende
The high-density suburbs of Budiriro and Glenview that have been touted as the epicentre of cholera and typhoid due to uncollected waste are now epitomes of hygiene thanks to Clean City programme being spearheaded by Econet Wireless.
About three months ago, the area around Budiriro 5 adjacent to the OK Supermarket was an eyesore. Spiked Online Media caught up with Ward 43 Councillor Norman Makondo who took us through the Clean City initiative.
“With Clean City, we have managed to clear all dumpsites in Budiriro. We have also cleaned most of the drains. As Harare City Council, we have anti-litter monitors in the ward. The anti-litter monitors are volunteers from the local residential areas.
“Clean City, through Mr. Lovemore Nyatsine, approached councillors to work with anti-litter monitors and volunteers to clean the suburb during the typhoid and cholera outbreaks. After successfully clearing and cleaning litter from Budiriro suburb, the project spread to other suburbs. I am very happy to be working with Clean City. They are organised and I can assure you that they are going to achieve their intended target of making sure that we don’t succumb to cholera and typhoid again as a result of dirt,” Councillor Makondo said.
In Budiriro 2, Spiked Online Media witnessed a complete facelift of the area. Along one of the longest stretches of road in the area called Nzou Drive were three dumpsites. One was near the Budiriro 2 Flats, the other was at the Inner Budiriro 2 Shopping Centre while the other one was just opposite the Seventh Day Adventist Church.
“Council was being accused of taking ages without sending refuse collection vehicles to Budiriro. People then resorted to emptying their bins at open spaces at the Budiriro 2 shops and along Nzou Drive. In the end it was an eyesore. People would endure the pungent smell. Children were exposed to diseases as they scavenged for toys in the rubbish bins. During the rainy season, the boreholes would be easily contaminated by the waste from the dumpsites,” said Mary Gonohori, a Budiriro 2 resident.
Councillor for Ward 33, Joseph Kunashe, who is responsible for the Budiriro 2 area hailed the partnership with Clean City, which he said had gone a long way in promoting proper sanitation and hygiene. He called for retailers and other stakeholders to join hands in making the city clean.
Councillor Kunashe hailed the Material Recovery Centre (MRC) that was put in place at Budiriro 1 Shopping Centre. The MRC is a structure built to receive, sort, process and store recyclable materials, which are then shipped to end-users. The MRC has already seen more than 5 000 households in Glen View and Budiriro practice waste-source separation at the household level.
A weekly waste bin collection schedule has also been established in the area by Clean City, with over 10 000 households receiving bin liners. This is in addition to 7 drainages that have been cleaned in Budiriro, and 20 illegal dumps that have been successfully decommissioned, translating to over 50 tonnes of waste.
Clean City Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Lovemore Nyatsine said the partnership with City of Harare was bearing some tangible fruits and said the company has plans to replicate the programme countrywide.