Back to Index

Water woes worsen in Bulawayo
Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA)
December 10, 2007

Water woes have worsened in Bulawayo with water levels having diminished to desperate levels. The current water shortages in Bulawayo are said to have dwindled to only less than a quarter of normal supply. The City of Bulawayo is sitting on a health crisis, time bomb which can explode anytime. Reports from the City of Bulawayo indicate that piped water supply has been cut to less than half a day per week for individual households a situation which has not gone well with residents.

Residents are now being supplied water using bowsers or they have to resort to getting water from streams. This exposes them to cases of water borne diseases. This situation in Bulawayo is more like the disaster in Harare's Mabvuku Tafara suburb where some house holds have gone for months without running water. CHRA is wary that the situation will be further compounded by the takeover of sewer and water administration by the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA). In Harare the water bodies have about 60% water but the problem of purification has led to the water crisis. It is almost certain that ZINWA will further exacerbate the water situation in Bulawayo owing to its incompetence record. Apart from the poor services that ZINWA has to offer, residents in Bulawayo must brace for massive rates increases as happened in Harare.

The City of Bulawayo will loose the much needed revenue to help resolve the water crisis. The problem of water in Bulawayo arises primarily from drought that has hit the region. Three of the dams supplying Bulawayo have been decommissioned owing to critically low levels of water. The only dam left is Insiza with about 37% capacity. CHRA submitted a paper to the Parliamentary portfolio committee on Local governance and renewed its calls for the cabinet to rescind its decision on the takeover of sewer and water services. CHRA called upon Parliament and the Government of Zimbabwe to increase funding to local authorities to help resolve the water crisis in Zimbabwe.

Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.

TOP