Harare City Council is tirelessly working on its 50 remaining days of the implemented 100 –day project targets aiming at improving the water quality in the city, rehabilitate collection of refuse as well as implementing some prospects on traffic management.
The project’s main thrust is to meet the residents’ expectations as they require quality service delivery from the council.
Speaking during the Rapid Results Projects mid-term review in Harare on the 5th of March 2018, Enock Mupamawonde, the Acting Mayor for Harare urged the members to engage with different stakeholders when planning so that progress could be achieved and witnessed by the residents.
The mid-term review workshop also focused on organisational development, resource management, and ease of doing business discussions and presentations.
“Waste management is a topical issue which residents of Harare always cry about because service delivery is not impressing. Last time we agreed on engaging with Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority on special tariffs for water purification and also to engage with Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority. The question now is have we fulfilled what we planned? There is really need to energise our efforts and this will help us in trying to make sure that residents and investors and all those who pass through Harare operate in a conducive environment, we don’t want them to operate in a difficult situation,” he said.
Mupamawonde said there was need for City of Harare to have an investment desk and buffer stocks on water treatment chemicals that would guide when plans are being carried out. Chemicals for water treatment, he said, need to be reduced from 9 percent to 3 percent.
He emphasised on the issue that the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing must respond and approve quickly the petitions it receives from the city council office.
In as much as trafficable roads are concerned, the council is geared to continue putting more efforts in strategy to remove kombis from the Central Business District. It has been said that other means of transport should be explored so that the best system can be adopted and be used.
Mrs Judith Mujegu, the team leader for Trafficable Roads reiterated that there was need to engage Local Government with Zupco in terms of negotiating for purchase and introduction of buses.
She said bus lane markings and construction of new ranks in identified positions is already in progress.
“For the Sunshine City’s status to be maintained, there is need for a National Traffic and Transport Master Plan to guide the preparations of Harare Traffic. A drafted concept paper on Bus Mass Transit System needs also to be cascaded down to the lowest levels. Setting up of a public Transportation should be made up to central Government, Local Government, Traffic Council Safety of Zimbabwe, representatives of operators and other stakeholders need to be engaged as well, “said Mujegu.
On sanitation, Eng. Calvin Chigariro, the Harare City Council’s acting head of waste management said the council was aiming at improving refuse collection from 65% up to 80% by 10 April. He said dumpsites needed to be rehabilitated as well and the placement of underground bins was important.
Eng. Chigariro mentioned that the achievements they made previously were successful through the willingness by churches and other stakeholders to partner with the council in awareness programs targeting anti-littering.