PREPARATIONS for the Old Gwanda Road rehabilitation project have begun, marking a significant step towards improving the region’s road network.
There are reports that the rehabilitation will enhance the road’s condition and boost economic activity in the area.
The project is a collaborative effort between the government and a private company Zwane Enterprise Limited.
Speaking to Southern Eye during the just-ended Zimbabwe International Trade Fair last week, Zwane Enterprise Limited chief executive Bekithemba Mbambo said they had partnered the government to develop the road which had been in a bad condition for a long time.
“The road is a government infrastructural project, hence we needed all the paperwork to be ready before we started construction,” he said.
Mbambo said the company was going to change the road’s structure, adding that the development would result in some homesteads being relocated.
“We will not follow the current structure of the road. There are changes that are going to be made and the new structure requires 44 homesteads to be relocated.
“We have already engaged the homestead owners and they have agreed. We are going to construct new homes for them. We have already constructed one new homestead,” he said.
- Old Gwanda Road rehabilitation begins
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Mbambo said the project would attract investors.
He also said if the road was not rehabilitated, the new Matopo University would not be accessible.
Mbambo said road construction would begin end of May this year, adding that the funder of the project was willing to fund other road projects.
The state of roads in Matabeleland has reached a critical point, with major highways and rural roads in a deplorable condition.
The Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Highway is also one of the roads plagued by potholes while roads in Nkayi and Tsholotsho are impassable, hindering food aid distribution and agricultural activities.
