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Local government media tracker week ending June 16 2013
Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA)
June 17, 2013

Zupco back on Harare urban roads
The Herald

Zupco will re-introduce a Harare intra-urban transport system. The re-introduction of a bus service has been high on the agenda during a meet-the-people tour in Harare suburbs. At several of these meetings the public implored Local Government, Rural and Urban Development Minister Ignatius Chombo to ensure that the service was restored following the unilateral increase of bus fares by commuter omnibus operators. Zupco northern division operations manager Mr Kuda Maraini said initially seven 65-seater buses would be deployed in Norton, Budiriro, Glenview, Epworth, Chikurubi, Kuwadzana, Domboshava and Chitungwiza. On some of the routes like Norton, Kuwadzana Extension, Epworth and Domboshava the service would initially be during the morning and evening peak hours. "Our aim eventually is to cover the whole city. You will be able to see a Zupco bus at every turn". "The Zimbabwe United Passenger Company Limited is pleased to inform the travelling public that it is re-introducing commuter omnibus services within Harare that will depart from Rezende Bus Terminus," Government through the Transport, Communication and Infrastructural Development ministry has already issued a new national transport policy that seeks to re-introduce the mass bus transport system.

Construction rules need tightening
The Standard (Zimbabwe)

The Harare City Council has solid regulations governing the construction of commercial buildings and residential houses, some dating back to the colonial era. Although these regulations have been criticised as working against poor people, they have ensured that Harare, unlike other disorderly African cities, boasts of well-planned structures that can withstand severe weather patterns and stand the test of time. Sadly, this is becoming history as these time-tested regulations are no longer being enforced by Harare City Council. Like mushrooms, illegal settlements are sprouting at every open space and the city fathers lack the political will to stop this trend. Sub-standard commercial buildings are also being erected in Harare in broad daylight. We wonder if building inspectors still have a role to play in the construction of houses and commercial buildings since nowadays, anyone can pitch up at an undeveloped piece of land, even wetlands, and start construction work. Many buildings are being constructed at breakneck speed and do not meet city bylaws governing the construction of high-rise buildings. It doesn't require an engineer to discern that some of these structures are a disaster waiting to happen. We reported a few weeks ago about a multi-storey building that had no protective sheeting to protect people walking past it from falling bricks but nothing was done about it. The mishap that left mangled metal and other debris littering a section of Orr Street at Mohammed Mussa Wholesalers on Tuesday should be a wake-up call to the authorities. It is only a matter of time before a major disaster happens in Harare if authorities fail to stop the erection of sub-standard structures in the city. What is also worrying is that the city now allows the construction of houses with mud bricks, another recipe for disaster as they are not strong enough. Without regulation, Harare will end up like other African cities where collapsing buildings kill many people each year.

Harare fails own test
The Standard (Zimbabwe)

Harare City Council has failed to meet its own deadline on the removal of commuter omnibuses from the Market Square and Speke Avenue bus ranks to the kombi holding bays along Coventry Road as part of measures to ease central business district congestion. Urban planning services director Mr Psychology Chiwanga confirmed that work was still in progress on the bay site. At least US$500 000 is required to build the proper structures but so far only US$40 000 has been released. The money is required to build toilets, install boom gates, ticketing offices, tar the place and provide shelter and a perimeter wall. A ticket issued at the holding bay would allow the kombi to access the Market Square and Speke bus ranks. The city is negotiating to purchase land to create two more holding bays for kombis using the Charge Office and Fourth Street Bus ranks. Radio communication would be used to call in kombis into the bus ranks in batches. The city expects teething problems when the kombis start using the bays. He said once the holding bays start working the city would introduce a shuttle service between Market Square and Fourth Street Bus Terminus.

Harare runs out of water cleaning chemicals
NewsDay

Most residential areas around Harare and the central business district (CBD) have been without water for the past two weeks. The most affected areas include New Marlborough, Chadcome, Warren Park, Chitungwiza and Tynwald. Harare mayor said the water crisis had been exacerbated by a shortage of water treatment chemicals. However, he said the situation had since been rectified. “The stocks of aluminium sulphate went down to alarming levels. Our main supplier is Zimphos and had a problem with the supply of bauxite from their supplier in Mozambique. He said the old water piping system resulted in a lot of water leakages. “The amount of water we are producing every day should be enough to meet the needs of the people. However, we are losing between 40% to 50% of treated water due to leakages,” he said. “To stop this problem, we need to procure pressure-reducing valves and have them installed in the water distribution system. The piping system has not been replaced in a long time and we need to lay our hands on $14 million to buy 150km worth of pipes from Turnall Fibre Cement.”

Masunda commissions city clinic
The Herald

Harare Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda yesterday commissioned a day clinic whose construction started 15 years ago and will service up to 30 000 residents from Kuwadzana Extension and the adjacent Zvimba Rural District Council. The clinic provides primary health care which includes maternal, child health care, family health service and curative services. Construction of the clinic began in 1997 with funding from the World Bank under a programme code named Urban II, but was stopped in 2007 when relations between Zimbabwe and the West stalled over the land reform exercise. Using its own resources generated from user fees at other health centres, the city took over the project and finished construction, resulting in the clinic opening its doors to the residents on April 4. The opening of the clinic brings to 14 the number of polyclinics in Harare. Mr Masunda said plans were afoot to upgrade the city’s health facilities to provide world class services. He urged the community to safeguard the clinic against vandalism. Ministry of Local Government, Rural and Urban Development director of urban local authorities Mrs Priscilla Mudzinge commended the city for bringing health facilities closer to the people. Mrs Mudzinge said people in nearby informal settlements such as Greenways, Snake Park and parts of Zvimba would benefit from the clinic.

Water woes continue in Harare
The Herald

The water situation in Harare has worsened prompting some companies in the central business district to order their employees to go back home. Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda said the Harare City Council requires US$20 million to upgrade its aging and crumbling water and sewer pipe infrastructure. The CBD has gone for almost three days while some residential areas have gone for weeks without tap water. Most areas such as Glen View, Glen Norah, Budiriro, Highfield, Kambuzuma, Avenues, Malbereign, Bluffhill, Monavale, Avondale and Milton Park have been forced to resort to unprotected sources for water exposing themselves to waterborne diseases. Angry residents have slammed the MDC-T run Harare City Council for failing to supply water. A Mbare resident Ms Zodwa Magaisa said they have now resorted to Mukuvisi River for drinking water and laundry. The situation has become desperate and an outbreak of water borne diseases is looming. Harare city spokesperson Mr Leslie Gwindi said the water shortages were a result of maintenance work in progress. “We are carrying out maintenance work on the old pumps that are bursting one after another at Morton Jaffray because of their old age, but we should expect to receive normal water supply soon after we finish our maintenance work any time soon Meanwhile, speaking at a ceremony to commission two fire tenders which were donated by Mr Peter Lobels to the Harare Fire Brigade, Mayor Masunda said: “The Harare City Council requires a total of US$20 million. US$14 million is for pipe replacement covering 115 km through Harare, US$4 million dollars is for the engineers and US$2 million for pressure reducing valves. Pipes which were installed in the 1970s had reached the end of their effective life. The aging water and waste water infrastructure has resulted in unreliable water supplies and inadequate waste water treatment in the city. The council spent US$12,5 million in 2009 to upgrade its water pipe infrastructure and has secured a grant from multilateral institution to improve water supply in the city. Aging infrastructure illustrated what some see as the failure by local authorities to invest in replacing infrastructure or to undertake regular replacement programmes. Deferred maintenance has brought untold hardships to city residents who in some parts were going for several months without water. Eruptions of water mains or sewer lines have angered residents and brought into focus the failure by local authorities to maintain infrastructure. The council is now relying on private sector support to maintain its assets and to enhance service delivery. Mr Lobels donated fire tenders worth US$300 000 to enhance the city’s fire unit, cement manufacturer Lafarge refurbished a city ambulance while Delta Beverages pledged to refurbish the city’s emergency fleet. Retail chain store, OK Supermarket, donated US$50 000 to the fire department for the maintenance of broken truck.

Harare slashes rates
The Herald

Harare City has slashed utility bills by 30 percent from next month up to December 31 as an incentive to encourage ratepayers to settle their bills. This is also meant to rescue the city from a crippling financial crisis that has seen the local authority rely heavily on debt financing for all its capital projects. Harare is owed over US$400 million by Government, residents and the commercial sector for rates, water, refuse collection and other services. The decision was reached by the full council at its monthly meeting on Tuesday following failure by council to rein in defaulters who have ignored final letters of demand and company visits. The city has also been using water disconnections to enforce payment of bills but because water delivery is at its lowest the council can no longer use that method to force bill settlement. Only 40 percent of households in Harare are receiving water. Residents have also cited poor service delivery as a reason for not paying while studies have shown that the high unemployment rate caused by illegal sanctions has incapacitated many people who can no longer sustain urban life. The offer is only valid until December 31 following which debtors failing to clear their debts would have the discount reinstated. "Council authorises the city treasurer to award discounts of 30 percent on arrears on commercial and residential debtors who settle their current bills plus the outstanding arrears in full within the period up to 31 December 2013," reads part of the minutes. But residents and commercial enterprises that have been up to date with their payments would only enjoy a 20 percent discount from July to December.

Making business out of water rationing
NewsDay

These new, illegal businesses are the result of the dire need for water, as rationing in towns and cities continues because of shortages of water treatment chemicals in this southern African nation. Harare’s mayor, Muchadeyi Masunda, has gone on record saying that the council needs $3 million a month for water treatment chemicals, a challenge compounded by the city’s obligation to supply water to neighbouring towns like Chitungwiza, Norton, and Ruwa. Councillors from Chitungwiza, where Chikwanha lives, told IPS that the council there failed to pay for water supplied by Harare’s Lake Chivero, thus intensifying water rationing in a town of nearly two million people. People have now turned to wells, streams and inadequate boreholes, as well as illegal traders, for their water.

Chombo commissions new equipment
The Herald

Harare’s refuse collection and road maintenance capacity has been boosted following the commissioning of plant and equipment valued at US$17 million by Local Government, Rural and Urban Development Minister Ignatius Chombo. Minister Chombo addressed the full council before commissioning part of the equipment that was on display at Town House last week on Thursday. Equipment that is already with Harare is valued at US$7, 5 million while additional equipment valued at US$9, 5 million is either on the way to Harare, in bonded warehouses or at various stages of procurement. The commissioned equipment comprises of 27 new refuse trucks and four skip bin trucks. Road equipment such as drop side lorries, motorised road marking gadgets and excavators were acquired from local suppliers Pazza Buster and Dulys. The city has been blamed over the past five years for its failure to collect garbage and repair the 5 600km of road that have gaping potholes and worn out verges. The equipment was acquired through a US$15 million loan from BancABC and US$2 million from the Zimbabwe National Road Authority through vehicle licence fees. Minister Chombo lauded Harare for adhering to the principles of service delivery. Harare has now accomplished one of its targets of having a refuse compactor for each of the 46 wards. Residents of Harare should now see a difference,” said Minister Chombo.

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