The Sunday Mail
Despite the fact that Nyanga presents immense investment opportunities in timber, energy, trout fishing and tourism, the urban settlement remains largely undeveloped. Without industrial activity, it remains a purely residential settlement with the majority of residents working as civil servants.
Our Reporter Tendai Chara was recently in Nyanga and interviewed Mr Zefania Jaravaza, the Nyanga Rural District Council CEO who – among other issues – spoke about the “Mount Nyangani Curse,” a hex he believes is dissuades tourists from coming to the area.
Q: What is stopping Nyanga from attaining town status?
A: It is not a matter of when we are going to attain the status but the issue is whether we are going to maintain that status if it is granted. We do not have any industries here and the majority of the people are civil servants with the rest being in the informal sector. The residents are struggling to pay the rates. We have, however, resolved to apply for town status and I am sure we can meet the requirements.
Q: Nyanga is one of the country’s prime tourist destinations and presents investment opportunities in timber, trout fishing and power generation, are you satisfied with the tourist arrivals and the level of economic activity?
A: Tourist arrivals have of late been decreasing primarily due to the negative publicity generated from the disappearances of tourists at Mount Nyangani. This, to me, is a sort of some curse. Our roads are, however, in bad conditions and this might be a factor that is contributing to the low arrivals. Nyanga does not have an aerodrome and this makes travel very difficult for tourists. The artefact village at Nyamhuka is practically deserted and the hotel occupancy is at its lowest.
Q: What are some of the investment opportunities that potential investors can pursue?
A: Nyanga is known for its soft timber. In my view, timber must not be transported to such places as Harare in its raw state. Instead, it must be processed here. Government must declare Nyanga a special economic zone. Opportunities are there in the agro-processing industry. We are blessed with weather conditions that are favourable to the production of high-grade potatoes, apples, plums and leaches, among others. These must be processed here as opposed to being ferried in their raw state.
Nyanga is also a trout fish-producing area and investors can set up trout caning industries as opposed to transporting raw fish. Investors can also venture into the power generating sector. The solar energy sector can also be tapped into. One of Nyanga’s major strength lies in its abundant water resources. We have two major rivers – the Gairezi and Nyamombe – and these are perennial sources of water. If dams are constructed, such areas as Mutoko and Mudzi can also benefit. Our neighbours in Mozambique often complain that the water that we are not harvesting is causing flash floods. Nyanga must not be this poor.
Q: Have you been able to satisfy your housing requirements?
A: We are capable of providing housing but the challenge that we are facing is that people from across the country are eager to own houses in Nyanga due to the favourable weather conditions. We currently have 3 357 people on our low and medium-density housing waiting list. A total of 3 911 are on the high-density waiting list.
As a council, we are currently servicing stands in Nyangani Park Extension and 800 families are set to benefit. Nyanga has one of the lowest rates in the country, with home-owners paying a total of $7 per month. This amount goes towards sewage reticulation, refuse collection and public lighting. Some of our tenants are, however, not paying up and we are owed US$583 732 in unpaid rates.
One of our biggest challenges is the unavailability of land for housing development. In the past, we were forced to acquire land in Sedze and Hanga communal areas but the traditional leaders are not eager to release the land.
For a high-density residential stand, we charge US$4 per square metre with low-density area stands selling for US$6 per square metre. These are some of the lowest rates in the country.
A: What does the future hold for Nyanga?
Q: The future looks bright. All we need to do is to patch up a few grey areas. We have three banks, a building society and district hospital. In terms of infrastructure, we are bigger than Mutoko and Mvurwi, two urban settlements that were recently granted town status.
