ACTING President Constantino Chiwenga has said the Government is seized with finding a lasting solution to the perennial water crisis in Matabeleland including the prevailing power challenges facing the country as they are threatening economic growth.
Addressing scores during a Zanu-PF rally in Gampu, Bulilima District in Matabeleland South province yesterday, Acting President Chiwenga said as a servant leadership, the Zanu-PF Government is committed to implementing a raft of measures aimed at reviving the economy through addressing power and water challenges.
“We can never over-emphasise the need for those who are ruling the country to build the nation hence our thrust as a party. You will notice that we have gone all out to address the plight of our people, looking at the issue of providing adequate water in Matabeleland,” he said.
“The water crisis in the region is giving us sleepless nights. I am glad that despite constraints we have started working on major projects like the Lake Gwayi-Shangani project, which will solve some of the problems. Besides these major projects, we are also constructing dams in different districts to ensure everyone has access to water.”
The massive Lake Gwayi-Shangani will be a lasting solution to Bulawayo’s perennial water woes as the expanded infrastructure will enhance feeding of water from Magwegwe Reservoir into Criterion Treatment Works which will enhance distribution of water to critical areas across the city.
Criterion Treatment Works is the nerve centre of the city’s water treatment and distribution.
Financed from domestic resources from enhanced fiscal space the construction of the construction of the 650 million cubic metres dam is being done simultaneously with the laying of a 245KM pipeline linking Lake Gwayi Shangani and Bulawayo.
Both projects are expected to create wider economic opportunities and spur increased development in the entire region.
Acting President Chiwenga said the upgrading of Unit 7 and 8 and the Hwange Thermal Power Station will help solve the power challenges facing the country.
“The least we can do as Zimbabweans is asking God to open the floodgates so that it rains as that will help solve our power challenges. Outside that miracle, we can only be patient with the Government as we are working flat out to ensure that this power challenge does not disrupt economic activities and livelihoods,” he said.
Zimbabwe is facing acute power shortages which have seen consumers going for long hours, outside the normal load shedding periods, without electricity.
The situation, caused initially by frequent breakdowns at Hwange Thermal Power Station, has been compounded by water shortages in Lake Kariba resulting in a cut back at Kariba South Power Station, which provides the bulk of the country’s electricity supplies.
The Zambezi River Authority which runs the Kariba Dam, wrote to Zimbabwe Power Company last week directing it to stop generating electricity until at least January when water levels are expected to have picked up.
Ramping up generation at the thermal power stations and increasing power imports are among the measures pushed by the Government after Kariba South Power Station halved generation.
The US$1,4 billion Hwange Thermal Power Section Unit 7 and 8 expansion project is also set to ease power cuts as it will inject 600MW to the national grid.
Zimbabwe’s power generation capacity is subdued at around 600MW with demand hovering around 1 750MW, according to official statistics.
Turning to the education sector, Acting President Chiwenga said the Government is working on recruiting more teachers for deployment in Matabeleland, particularly in rural areas.
VP Chiwenga addressing during the official opening of the High Level Tripartite Dialogue on Labour Migration Governance in the SADC region at Victoria Falls yesterday
“We cannot continue witnessing our children dropping out of school and looking for jobs once they finish Grade Seven. We need to produce more teachers from Matabeleland so that they save their communities instead of leaving the country, it’s ours and ours to build,” he said.
The Acting President called on all citizens to partner with the Government in building a Zimbabwe that everyone will be proud of.
“I cannot end my talk without talking about network and road coverage which we are working on. We want our children and rural communities to easily access the internet just like everyone hence we will act. I call upon fellow ministers to help us in achieving that dream as it is part of Vision 2030. We want buses to frequent our rural areas so that economic activities are revived,” he said. – The Chronicle
