Siphakeme .Mnindwa
Blessed Moyo, Sunday News Reporter
GWANDA Town is collaborating with local government-sourced donors to address issues of water and sewer reticulation that have plagued the community raising fears of disease outbreaks.
The development comes in the wake of residents having voiced their concerns to the local authority regarding the lack of clean water and inefficient sewer system, which have contributed to outbreaks of diseases such as cholera.
The current sewer reticulation systems were designed for a much smaller population, necessitating significant upgrades as the town’s population continues to grow putting a strain on the available infrastructure.
In an interview with Sunday News, Gwanda Mayor Councillor Thulani Moyo emphasised the local authority’s commitment to addressing residents’ concerns.
“The priority developmental issues are to improve the water and sewerage infrastructure as well as social amenities such as hospitals, schools, and recreational facilities,” Clr Moyo said.
He acknowledged that Gwanda, like many towns and cities, is grappling with a national electricity deficit which sometimes affects water pumping.
“The municipality has been heavily reliant on electricity to operate its water and sewer treatment plants, and ongoing power cuts have caused significant disruptions to water supply,” he said.
As a response to that, Clr Moyo said the town is finalising the solarisation of its water and sewer infrastructure where local businessman Mr Cabangani Mangena is working on installing 650KW of solar energy for the water reticulation system and 750KW for the sewer system.
“So far, the solarisation of the water and sewerage plant is at an advanced stage because you cannot dream of having water distributed daily without addressing and improving the electricity issue,” Clr Moyo said.
“Our target is to supply clean and safe water 24 hours a day. However, our infrastructure, especially the water plant has also become obsolete. For us to have top-quality service delivery, we are working on addressing the infrastructure challenges.”
He said Gwanda is in advanced discussions with a number of potential investors following a presentation at the Matabeleland South Hybrid Investment Promotion event in Beitbridge that attracted investors to the town.
“We received several calls from investors who want to come and invest in their home country, some of whom are within the Matabeleland Province,” he noted.
Clr Moyo highlighted the Local Government’s determination to enhance service delivery.
“We want to work hard to build trust, promote a culture of teamwork and enhance our capacity as we strive to deliver world-class services to our communities, following the ‘Ilizwe lakhiwa ngabaninilo/ Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo philosophy of President Mnangagwa,” he said.
