Unpacking developmental projects in Mash East as President Mnangagwa expected to address star rally in UMP

MARONDERA- The Zanu PF campaign trail for the August 23 harmonised elections
will see President Emmerson Mnangagwa addressing party’s supporters at
Mutawatawa High School in Uzumba-Maramba-Pfungwe (UMP) district on Saturday
(August 05), barring any changes.
Thousands of people are expected to attend the star rally as the Second Republic
continues to outlay its obligation of leaving no one and no place behind in its
development agenda.
The rally comes at a time the President Mnangagwa-led Government has been
rolling out infrastructural developments using local resources through budgetary
allocations to all councils and institutions, thereby underlining the “Nyika Inovakwa
Nevene Vayo” mantra.
Since being voted to control the levers of the country’s powers, the Government has
also reached out to all communities, perceived to be marginalised or otherwise
leading to the upliftment of people’s lives in all corners of the country.
The developmental discourse has seen the adoption of broad-based policies that
have led to a notable improvement of the country’s development agenda, with Vision
2030 in sight seven years from now.
Gaps are being built to close them and unique challenges faced in all communities
one at a time while opportunities are also being created.
In the ruling party’s UMP district stronghold, Government is constructing civil
servants' flats at Mutawatawa Business Centre, which are expected to be completed
before the end of the year.
Similar flats are under construction in Marondera and Hwedza districts while a
project of similar nature is underway or in the pipeline in other districts in the
province.
The development comes as the Second Republic is leaving no stone unturned in its
quest to ensure that its employees have decent accommodation.
The company which was contracted to carry out the project has already brought
bricks, cement and other materials to the site. Consistent with the interventions of
the Second Republic under the stewardship of President Mnangagwa, priority is
being given on scaling up or completing key projects that had stalled for years.

Cases in points include Muchekeranwa Dam in Marondera East which was
commissioned and has an irrigation scheme that is set to be increased to 200
hectares from the current 60 hectares in the coming farming seasons.
A few weeks ago, President Mnangagwa also commissioned the Chivhu Dam as
Government continues to implement projects that contribute to the improvement of
people's livelihoods with the aim of attaining an upper-middle income economy by
2030.
Chivhu dam is a zoned earth fill dam whose main purpose is to supply water for the
expanding Chivhu Town while irrigation and fisheries schemes were developed as
part of the project.
Drilling of boreholes in Mashonaland East communal areas and yonder is also part
of the Presidential Rural Development Programme which was launched by President
Mnangagwa.
At least one borehole is being drilled in 35 000 villages across all provinces where
people will have increased access to clean and potable water.
Another notable project that was rolled in Mashonaland East is the re-construction
and eventual commissioning of the Rwenya bridge which links Mashonaland East
Province and Manicaland through Nyamapanda in Mudzi.
The bridge in Mudzi had been swept away by rains 10 years ago resulting in the
paralysing of socio-economic activities between the two provinces and its re-
construction put to light the fact that the Second Republic is walking the talk when it
comes to prioritising road and infrastructural development across the country.
There is also the construction of the near-complete Hwedza Government complex at
Hwedza Centre that will ease office space challenges faced by various departments.
Government is funding the project and on completion, all its employees will be
housed under one roof unlike the present scenario whereby they are scattered
across the centre.
Further to that, there is the game-changing US$1 billion Manhize iron and steel plant
which is expected to be fully operational by November. The plant, commissioned by
President Mnangagwa in October last year as part of the Second Republic’s
commitment to take deliberate efforts that support the iron and steel industry and its
value chain, is being constructed by Dinson Iron and Steel Company (DISCO) which
is under Tsingshan Mining Investments Zimbabwe.
Provinces that are already benefiting from the plant through employment creation,
infrastructural development and other spin-offs include Mashonaland East,
Mashonaland West and the Midlands.
There has been massive construction of roads, schools, clinics and other
infrastructure utilities in Mashonaland East over the past five years.