Urgent Action Needed as Drought Devastates Bulawayo Region

Local leaders are sounding the alarm over a deepening water crisis that is already devastating rural communities across the Bulawayo region.

Speaking at a full council meeting on Monday, Mayor David Coltart painted a grim picture of the rapidly deteriorating situation.

“I was profoundly shocked,” Coltart told councillors. He added, “Even small dams that I have seen in the past which had water in September, October are already completely dry.”

Crop Failure

Coltart said traditional leaders in the affected areas have reported complete crop failures, with no maize, sorghum or millet harvested this year. Cattle herds are also dying in large numbers, forcing desperate farmers to sell off their livestock at heavily discounted prices.

“Cattle are dying. People are already selling their cattle in great numbers and the price of cattle is daunting,” Coltart said.

The crisis is not limited to rural areas, the mayor warned, with the city of Bulawayo also facing severe water shortages. Coltart said the city’s water infrastructure is already under immense strain, with several major dams slated to be decommissioned in the coming months.

Dams Decommissioned

“Lower Ncema and Upper Ncema will be decommissioned within the coming months. That places an even greater strain on our water articulation and pumping works with those dams, given their proximity to the Ncema water pump stations,” Coltart said.

To address the immediate crisis, the mayor called on the national government to urgently release $13 million in promised emergency funding. He said the money is needed to reconfigure critical pipelines from the Insiza and Mtshabezi dams, which he said represent the city’s best hope for securing enough water in the short-term.

“We have to reconfigure pipelines from Insiza and Mtshabezi dams. This is work that cannot be done overnight, cannot even be done within weeks. There are major engineering works required,” Coltart said.

Priority Projects

The mayor noted that the government has already provided $1.5 million in emergency funding, which the city’s engineering department is working to allocate to priority projects. However, he urged the Minister of Finance to release the remaining $13 million as soon as possible.

“And since we last met, the Minister of Finance has availed the Council of $1.5 million, and our engineering departments are working hard to ensure that that money is allocated to our priorities. And I take this opportunity to call on the Minister of Finance to please disperse the balance of that money, some $13 million. We need that money urgently,” Coltart said.

Looking to the medium-term, Coltart said the city is making progress on plans to develop a major new water source at the Glass Block project.

Water Purchase Agreement

He said the city has been working closely with a consortium on a water purchase agreement, and is awaiting the necessary approvals from the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA) and the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA).

“The town clerk and his management team have had very productive meetings with the consortium. And we are in the final stages of our management, we are in the final stages of our management. And the consortium agreeing on the water purchase agreement, the legal agreement that will facilitate that,” Coltart said.

Coltart urged both national and local authorities to treat the water crisis as a top priority, warning that lives and livelihoods are hanging in the balance.

“And so we face a real crisis in this region, throughout this country, but particularly as leaders, we face a great crisis at present,” he said.