The ManicaPost
Samuel Kadungure Senior Reporter—
ZIMBABWE’S road network, which has deteriorated over the years and now poses grave danger to motorists, requires at least $5 billion for it to be rehabilitated.
Speaking in Mutare last week, where he allocated about $1.8 million for various road rehabilitation projects in the province, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Development, Dr Joram Gumbo, said at best, the roads could be rehabilitated through Private Public Partnerships as was the case with the Mutare-Plumtree Road.
Dr Gumbo said Zinara was collecting between $150 and $200 million per year which was not sufficient to cover the road maintenance backlog. Dr Gumbo also accused local authorities of failing to acquit and viramenting funds allocated to them by Zinara for road maintenance, adding that councils were instead using the funds to settle debts, salaries and allowances.
“Zinara will with immediate effect stop giving such councils any funds and directly engage private contractors to do those roads,” said Dr Gumbo.
Dr Gumbo said councils and local parliamentarians must plan which roads to prioritise in their respective districts to avoid a situation where Zinara is overwhelmed by voluminous requests from the same district.
“If we give you money and you do not put it to good use, you will continue say bad things about us,” he said.
Chairperson for Rural District Councils CEOs forum, Mr Edward Pise, appealed to Dr Gumbo to engage his finance ministry counterpart, Cde Patrick Chimanasa to ring-fence the funds.
“The funds from Zinara are being garnished by Zimra. Can’t the funds be ring fenced as councils we feel you should engage the ministry of finance at your level because if this trend continues, we may fail to do the job,” said Mr Pise.
Rusape Town Council secretary, Mr Joshua Maligwa, said road authorities must be assisted to acquire full complements of road equipment. In Manicaland, the Department of Roads superintends over 2 712 kilometres of high volume tarred (1 533km) and gravelled roads (1 180km), with the District Development Fund taking care of 3 358km of low volume roads and the 10 local authorities catering for feeder roads in their respective districts.
The Department of Roads had three projects, measuring a paltry 44km, slated in 2016.
Dr Gumbo said $35m was required to rehabilitate Birchenough Bridge.
“It will cost the country $40m to build another bridge in the vicinity of the existing one and $35m to rehabilitate the existing one,” he said, adding that priority would also be given to the Birchnough-Murambinda Road, which has been on the cards for over two decades.
“We need to think outside the box and come up with joint ventures because the more the roads deteriorate, the more expensive they become to rehabilitate. Our roads have outlived their lifespan as some have not been attended to for 20 years.
“They should be maintained after every five years,” said Dr Gumbo.
A 2016 report from the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Development shows that not less than $2 billion is required to put Manicaland roads back in good shape.
The 118 kilometre Murambinda-Birchenough Road needs $116m, the 93km Odzi-Marange was quoted at $87m.
The 112km Headlands-Chikore Road requires $94m, while the Chimanimani-TilburyRroad needs $6m.
The Ngundu-Tanganda road requires $9,2m, while the 82km Nyanga-Ruwangwe Road requires $82m.
Odzani route, which is 31km, was quoted at $31m.
The 29km Chipinge-Mt Selinda Road was quoted at $14,5m, while the Chako-Jersey Road needs $6,3m.
Eastern Boarder Road needs $12, 4m. Katiyo Road needs $10m. Riverside-Odzi Road needs $3m.
The Chivhu-Nyazura Road requires $3m, while the resurfacing of the Mutare-Masvingo Road requires $29,6m, resurfacing of 36km stretch of Rusape-Nyanga Road requires $3m, while Mutare-Vumba Road resurfacing requires $1m.
