The Sunday Mail
Sunday Mail Reporter
More than 161 kilometres of road have been rehabilitated and surfaced this year using a US$900 million kitty that was reserved by Government for the Road Development Programme.
It marks the most significant progress in the past two decades to reverse the decay of the country’s road infrastructure. The major projects are being bankrolled by the fiscus. Government plans to build trafficable world-class roads for public convenience and to spur economic activity.
Progress
A progress report compiled by the Department of Works, which falls under the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development, indicates significant headway in all the country’s eight rural provinces for projects that had been planned for this year.
In Mashonaland Central, Government has completed laying asphalt over the 2,7-kilometre stretch of the Bindura-Mt Darwin-Mukumbura road (Bindura town).
Work on a 16km stretch of the Mt Darwin to Mukumbura road is now 78 percent (12,8 km) complete, while 80 percent has been covered on the planned 10km stretch of the St Albert- Dotito road.
Also, Government is halfway through laying asphalt on 10km of the Guruve-Kanyemba road that had been targeted this year. But progress on the Bindura-Matepatepa road, on which 10km had also been earmarked for an asphalt overlay, has been relatively slow, with only 3,6km (36 percent) having been done.
In Matabeleland South, construction of the 10km Guyu-Manama road is 60 percent complete, while widening of the Esigodini tollgate currently stands at 88 percent. The 55km Ngundu-Tanganda road in Manicaland was recently completed, but construction of a 16km stretch from Murambinda to Birchenough Bridge road is only at 21 percent after 3,4km were worked on.
In Mashonaland West, 70 percent of the Golden Valley-Sanyati road has been done, while the Alaska-Copper Queen road is halfway through.
In Masvingo, the Rutenga-Zvishavane road construction is at 60 percent.
The Chivi-Mandamabwe-Tokwe is 57 percent.
Further, progress on the Kapota-Zimuto road construction in Masvingo is at 69 percent.
The rehabilitation programme has also seen Phase Two on the Harare-Gweru road project — targeting 15km — covering over 75 percent. One of the key milestones this year involves completion of the Norton road-over-rail bridge, which will be commissioned soon.
However, work on the dualisation of the Harare-Mutare road managed to cover 11km of the planned 16km.
Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Joel Matiza told The Sunday Mail that Government’s road projects were largely on track.
“Government has done very well in terms of road rehabilitation and construction,” he said.
“We are on track to achieving Vision 2030. We have a number of roads that we worked on this year alone and road rehabilitation is ongoing.
Government’s economic blueprint, the Transitional Stabilisation Programme, says “the road, rail and air sub-sectors are critical in rapid industrialisation and agricultural advancement as they facilitate trade and movement of goods and people, hence the need to rehabilitate and upgrade the current stock of assets”.
Overall, Government plans to upgrade 781km of Zimbabwe’s road network, re-gravel 483km and construct 22 bridges.
