Hwange residents are divided over the proposed incorporation of Hwange Colliery Concession areas into the coal mining town, with some backing the move for better governance while others remain sceptical.
A parliamentary portfolio committee visited Hwange last week on Saturday to discuss the issue with various stakeholders, including local resident associations.
Hwange Residents Association chairman, Lucky Daka, acknowledged that opinions were mixed on the matter.
“Unfortunately, I was not available, but from what I gathered, there were some mixed feelings. Some were for the idea, and some were against,” Daka said.
However, he endorsed the incorporation proposal.
“We need to embrace this concept. It’s for the good of Hwange,” Daka added.
Greater Whange Residents Trust coordinator Fidelis Chima threw his weight behind the move, arguing that incorporation would bring much-needed coordination to the town’s governance.
“We residents are in support of incorporation, as it will put Hwange under one coordinated authority and improve local governance,” Chima said.
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The parliamentary committee’s visit was part of ongoing consultations on whether Hwange should be formally incorporated into a municipal structure, a move that could impact service delivery, local administration, and overall development in the coal-mining town.
The discussions came amid broader efforts to enhance governance structures in Zimbabwe’s urban and mining communities.
The GWRT in 2019 filed a petition seeking the intervention of the Local Government and Public Works ministry to put in place procedures for social amenities transfer from the concession to the ministry with clear timelines.
Government had asked the GWRT to make submissions of its position paper on the Hwange Local Board’s push for the integration of Wankie Colliery concessions into its jurisdiction and application for town status.
The developments come after the Local Government and Public Works minister appointed a commission to assess the readiness of the Hwange Local Board to incorporate Wankie Colliery Concession Area as well as to be upgraded to town status.
Hwange Local Board has been pushing for incorporation of the concession area and town status which will see the inclusion of seven wards currently outside its jurisdiction.
The trust said Hwange was one of the earliest mining settlements established at the beginning of the century, adding that the Wankie Coal Concession was granted in 1901 and covered 1 921 square kilometres.
Indications are that Hwange Colliery Company assumed local authority status for its concession area although there is no legal provision, while the Electricity Supply Commission (now Zesa) and the Rhodesia Railways (now NRZ) were given similar concessions to administer themselves.
