MORE than 3,000 kilometres of road networks in Harare are in urgent need of rehabilitation, laying bare the dire straits of the infrastructure in the capital.
This was said by the Deputy Minister of Transport, Joshua Sacco, recently in Parliament, where he painted a concerning picture of the state of the roads in the country.
Harare has 3,772 kilometres of road that need resurfacing, with 316 kilometres having been resurfaced.
Bulawayo Province has 1,500 kilometres of road that need to be addressed, with 661 kilometres having been attended to.
Conceding that the amount of road infrastructure requiring maintenance is concerning, Sacco said the Government is capacitating local authorities to resurface the roads.
“Mr Speaker, whilst the number of kilometres surfaced is not sufficient, the Ministry has embarked on the capacitation of all road authorities in Zimbabwe to enable timely maintenance of road infrastructure.
“This will greatly preserve the road infrastructure and lower the costs of road rehabilitation. It is in that regard that the Ministry aims to attend to all the roads that require rehabilitation as prescribed in the National Development Strategy,” said Sacco.
Local authorities and the central government have traded blame over the poor road infrastructure, which has been inundated with potholes in urban areas.
City councils accuse the Government of failing to disburse enough funds to maintain the roads.
In Harare, the City Council has resorted to pothole patching using quarry as a stop-gap measure.
Through the road rehabilitation programme, the government has stepped in to address the situation.
Allaying fears of the programme prioritising other areas, Sacco said some provinces have benefited as they have major highways, which get preference.
“Therefore, it is our responsibility to ensure that the development or resurfacing of these roads is done across the country. However, as you may be aware, certain provinces like Masvingo, for example, have a road that comes from Beitbridge to Masvingo, the South North Corridor, of which we have 139 kilometres that have been surfaced to date.
“If you look at the Bulawayo to Victoria Falls Road as well, that will add to the distance being surfaced, for example, in Matabeleland North.
“So, some provinces have what we call major highways or corridors that feed the region, and these obviously will get preference over other smaller roads.
“However, having said that, it is our role as a Ministry to work on all roads across the country and, resources permitting, leave no one and no place behind,” said Sacco.
