Bulawayo Bureau
THE Zimbabwe National Road Administration (Zinara) has secured US$400 million to accelerate the rehabilitation of three major highways that serve as economic lifelines linking production centres, tourism destinations and regional trade corridors.
Zinara, a parastatal responsible for mobilising, collecting and managing funds for the maintenance of Zimbabwe’s road network, secured the CBZ infrastructure bond, backed by its ring-fenced funds, to finance works on the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls, Harare-Chirundu and Beitbridge-Harare highways.
The investment comes as the Second Republic intensifies efforts to modernise the country’s transport infrastructure, recognising that reliable roads are essential for reducing the cost of doing business, improving the movement of goods and people, and strengthening Zimbabwe’s competitiveness as a regional trade and investment destination.
The three highways are of strategic economic significance beyond domestic connectivity.
Both the Beitbridge-Harare and Harare-Chirundu highways are critical parts of the North-South corridor, while the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway links the country’s second-largest city to Matabeleland North province and Victoria Falls, one of Zimbabwe’s prime tourism destinations.
“The funding is mainly for the Beitbridge-Harare, Harare-Chirundu and Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway projects. On the matter of provincial allocations, this is not applicable, as the funding is being used on the indicated road projects, which are all under the Department of Roads within the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development,” said Zinara.
Under the Second Republic, infrastructure rehabilitation has been a crucial component of the Government’s development agenda, with investment in roads, bridges, energy and other enabling infrastructure intended to support economic growth and the attainment of an upper middle-income economy by 2030.
Efficient road networks are particularly important for Zimbabwe’s mining, agriculture, manufacturing and tourism sectors, which depend on reliable transport to move raw materials, agricultural produce, equipment and finished goods to domestic and export markets.
For businesses, better roads can reduce vehicle operating costs, minimise delays and improve the predictability of deliveries.
For communities along the affected routes, improved infrastructure can enhance access to markets, healthcare, education and employment opportunities.
The latest development comes as construction on the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway has resumed, with all eight contractors reportedly back on site following months of inactivity.
Each contractor is targeting 20 kilometres of roadworks before the end of the year.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Mr Nick Mangwana recently said construction was progressing in phases, including bush clearing, detour construction, earthworks, drainage installation, surfacing and road widening.
Once the contractors complete their targeted year-end works, more than 50 percent of the highway is expected to be open to traffic.
Source: Zinara secures US$400m for three strategic highways – herald
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