By Caroline Washaya Moyo
HARARE — Corruption and poor governance within local authorities are undermining efforts to restore Harare’s status as the Sunshine City, Senator Godwills Masimirembwa has said.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Harare Metropolitan Provincial Development Committee (PDC) and Provincial Coordinating Committee (PCC) meeting at Rainbow Towers Hotel, Senator Masimirembwa challenged councils to improve accountability, strengthen service delivery and take a more active role in implementing the national development agenda.
The meeting is reviewing progress under the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) while laying the groundwork for the transition to NDS2.
Senator Masimirembwa singled out the continued presence of vendors in undesignated areas of Harare’s Central Business District (CBD), questioning why the problem persists when some vendors reportedly pay revenue to council and receive receipts.
“The reason why these vendors are not vacating the Central Business District is because Council is collecting revenue from them and they are being receipted,” he said.
He said addressing illegal vending required scrutiny of council revenue collection and enforcement systems, arguing that efforts to restore order in the CBD would remain difficult if municipal practices undermined regulations.
The challenge, he said, goes beyond removing vendors from the streets to addressing governance weaknesses that compromise effective urban management.
SERVICE DELIVERY UNDER SCRUTINY
The senator also challenged local authorities to demonstrate their preparedness to respond to disease outbreaks, flooding, cyclones and other emergencies under the Civil Protection framework.
He said the fight against corruption should be treated as a development priority, warning that Harare’s ambition to reclaim its Sunshine City identity would remain elusive without decisive action and improved institutional accountability.
Effective service delivery requires councils to use available resources responsibly and ensure that development programmes produce tangible benefits for residents.
GOVERNMENT SUPPORT
Senator Masimirembwa acknowledged central Government’s efforts to assist local authorities in addressing service-delivery challenges but questioned whether councils were doing enough in return.
“The central Government is doing more, if not going the extra mile, to help the councils tackle some of their service-delivery challenges. But the question still stands: what are the councils doing?” he said.
He challenged local authorities to complement Government support with improved performance, accountability and effective utilisation of resources.
NDS2 AND VISION 2030
As Zimbabwe transitions to NDS2, the senator urged councils to take ownership of the national development agenda and contribute meaningfully towards Vision 2030.
Local authorities play a critical role in translating national development objectives into improved infrastructure, sanitation, public health, environmental management and economic opportunities.
For Harare, reclaiming its Sunshine City status will require more than beautification projects. It will demand accountable governance, effective revenue management, functional infrastructure and reliable public services.
The challenge facing councils is to translate national development commitments into measurable improvements in residents’ daily lives.
