PARLIAMENT has accused the Harare and Chitungwiza municipalities of diverting wastewater fees into general accounts instead of repairing sewer infrastructure, as the local authorities seek an emergency US$9.3 million bailout.
In a report by the Portfolio Committee on Environment, Climate and Wildlife on water pollution hotspots in Harare and Chitungwiza, the Committee said funds collected from residents through service fees and fines imposed by the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) were not ring-fenced for capital repairs.
The report said the failure to direct the revenue towards infrastructure maintenance had contributed to 15 years of decay at key sites, including Amalinda Crossing and Morton Jaffray.
According to the Committee, the City of Harare is seeking US$5,509,350 from Devolution Funds to install 1,200mm trunk mains to stop the daily discharge of 80 megalitres of raw sewage at Amalinda Crossing.
The council is also requesting US$3,881,094 for emergency water works, including US$1,337,000 to procure three pump sets for Morton Jaffray Water Works.
“Engineers warned that without the pumps, greater Harare and Inkomo Barracks will run dry,” the report said.
The Committee also raised concerns over the effectiveness of environmental enforcement, saying local authorities had repeatedly avoided convictions for pollution-related offences.
“EMA has taken councils to court since 2014, but local authorities escape conviction by blaming ZESA power cuts, as Ruwa did in 2022,” the report noted.
To address the problem, the Committee recommended that Government introduce mandatory revenue ring-fencing by law to ensure wastewater fees and environmental fines are channelled towards sewer infrastructure repairs and pollution control.
It also called for the National Environmental Fund to be capitalised by December 31, 2026, and for local authorities to introduce modern by-laws enforcing the Polluter Pays Principle.
Under the principle, those responsible for pollution should bear the costs of preventing, controlling and remedying environmental damage.
For long-term financing, the Committee wants Treasury to provide sovereign guarantees for a proposed US$500 million municipal bond to fund Chitungwiza’s Cholera Alleviation Programme.
The report warned that without more than US$500 million in funding and improved financial discipline by local authorities, the metropolitan area would remain trapped in a cycle of disease and environmental destruction.
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