Hwange residents appeal to govt to solve water woes

Hwange (New Ziana) – Residents of the coal mining town of Hwange have appealed to the government to consider making an allocation in the 2021 national budget to fund perennial water shortages in the town.

The town’s water and sanitation services are in need of a complete overhaul.

In an interview, Greater Hwange Resident Trust programs officer, Sithembinkosi Ndlovu, said there is need to refurbish the water infrastructure in Hwange in order to provide clean water to all residents especially in the current COVID-19 pandemic era.

“We have a water and sanitation problem in Hwange. This is because the infrastructure of both water and sanitation is dilapidated,” he said.

Areas such as Ward 15 in Makwika Village, Ward 10 in Cinderella Village, Ward 9 and 11 in Number 2 Village periodically go for between three to five days without water every week.

The programs officer said that the water shortages may also be linked to the over-population of people.

“The available pipes of water were meant to cater for a limited number of residents, now there has been an increased number of people, perhaps the pipes are overburdened, hence are continually bursting,” Ndlovu said.

Railton suburb, one of the oldest in the mining town, has not been receiving running water for more than eight years.

The water woes in Hwange have forced residents to source the commodity from leaky or burst pipes in and around Hwange.

“The set-up in Hwange is funny because parts where the Hwange Colliery Company Limited (HCCL), National Railways of Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority operate from have water as these companies provide their own water, drawing direct from the Zambezi River,” Ndlovu said.

“Houses next to the Hwange Colliery are semi-detached and this is where one finds communal toilets where water is only available for two hours a day; that is in the morning from 6am to 8am. Residents of Madumabisa, Lwendulu, Cinderella and Makwika have to fetch water in the morning and then wait till the next day.”
New Ziana
New Ziana