| By Thupeyo Muleya A 27-year-old Zimbabwean man drowned while fishing in South Africa’s Nandoni Dam near Thohoyandou in Limpopo Province. Anderson Muvuru from Masvingo is reported to have drowned while checking on his fishing nets in the early hours of last Thursday morning. Police in Thohoyandou have launched a search for his body. According to South African police statistics, Muvuru is the 29th person to drown in the dam since the beginning of this year. A senior police officer at Thohoyandou Police Station yesterday said: "Our search team is still positioned and we are yet to recover his body. "As police we are worried at the ever increasing rate at which people are drowning at this dam. "Since the beginning of the year we have recorded 29 cases of drowning including this one. "In this particular incident, preliminary investigations reveal that the victim left his home early in the morning and told his neighbours that he wanted to check on his nets in the dam. "He then went into the dam alone and during the process of checking his nets he drowned. "A report was later made by his friends after he failed to return after a whole day," the officer said. Muvuru’s friend and neighbour, Jonathan Chinamtera, was on Friday quoted by Limpopo’s weekly paper The Mirror as saying: "His disappearance is still a mystery to us. "He used to fish with others and never ventured into the water alone. No one will be able to explain what happened. "What we know is that he told us he was going fishing and we have not seen him since then." The incident comes a year after another Zimbabwean man drowned in the same dam after his homemade canoe capsized. People living near the dam have petitioned the South African government to tighten security around the area. Published by; The Herald, 6 July 2010 website; www.herald.co.zw |
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Zim man drowns in SA
Beitbridge Border Post – travellers’ nightmare
By Thupeyo Muleya and Obert Chifamba
Banners inscribed "We Are Here To Serve" greet the visitor at the reception desk of any Zimbabwe Revenue Authority office throughout the country.
Psychologically, this prepares the visitor for an on-the-dot type of service, which sadly, is yet to be witnessed since Zimra’s inception in 2001.
A lot of people, for instance business executives and importers have been left licking bruised egos over the revenue authority’s shoddy services.
It has become a nightmare for people to import goods into the country because of the treatment they get from Zimra, especially at Beitbridge Border Post.
Last month, the parastatal left vehicle importers fuming after it moved the clearances of all imported cars from their premises to a private company without even advising them.
Just recently, the organisation re-shuffled its officers at the border post and the ensuing service delivery style exposed that some of the officers were not even conversant with their new tasks.
The bulk of the parastatal’s departments are manned by arrogant officers who take their time to respond to enquiries, that is, if they do not refer the matter to the next officer who will in turn find a heap of excuses for not giving prompt service.
In the end, most people have left their businesses unfinished in frustration. The example of one gentleman who wanted to redeem part of the proceeds realised from the sale of his vehicle quickly comes into the picture.
"They advised me that they would process everything within two weeks after which they would get back to me. Now it is over a month and I have been referred from one officer to another- all professing to be doing ‘something’ about the matter.
"After going through three different officers, I was finally referred to the warehouse manager who then told me to wait for yet another two weeks. This will now make it two months and they say they are still trying to reconcile the two different schedules they used during the auctioning of the vehicles," the irate man commented.
The visibly irate man added that at one point one of the officers even sounded furious over the phone and was quick to say that the person who was supposed to do the job was away.
It is fast becoming apparent that there is lack of monitoring of officers in most departments where they seem to have been given free reign to frighten and frustrate clients. The motor vehicle valuations and the revenue officers top the list of these notorious officers.
At some point last year the Shipping and Forwarding Agents’ Association of Zimbabwe called for the establishment of a border control authority at Beitbridge border post in a move that it felt would help to improve efficiency at the country’s busiest port of entry
The SFAAZ chief executive, Joseph Musariri bemoaned the status quo where there is no lead agency running the affairs at the border post.
He said the Government should look into the issue as a matter of urgency.
He also called on the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority to adopt the specialisation concept, which was formerly used, by the then customs and taxes units prior to its establishment.
"We are urging Zimra to have specialist officers to deal with certain areas of operations. This idea of moving officers from one department to another is only nurturing inefficiency. At some point you will come across a Zimra officer not even conversant with what is expected of him and this is causing unnecessary delays and confusion," he said.
They should classify them into revenue specialists, taxes, customs and excise, vehicles, administration and operations rather than operate as they are doing at the moment.
These officers’ functions should be clearly outlined and there is serious need for Zimra to re organise themselves and have carrier customs and taxes officers, he said.
Additionally, SFAAZ members were more than ready to support the creation of such an authority, he commented.
At the moment any department at the border can implement their programmes at will regardless of the effects on the other parties.
"We are really concerned by the current situation at Beitbridge border post where everyone thinks they can implement their programmes regardless of their effects on other members of society.
"As SFAAZ, we want a situation whereby we have an identified lead agent or have a port control authority which deals specifically with issues regarding the operations at this entry point," commented Musariri.
South Africa has this authority on their sides and it makes it easy to deal with some operational and administrative issues, he further explained.
He said such a port authority would deal with operations, administrative, security and health matters among other issues.
Musariri said some of the delays and inefficiencies in some departments at this entry point were a result of lack of monitoring; adding that with the establishment of the authority service delivery was bound to improve.
An average of 25 000 people and between 3 000 and 4 000 vehicles pass through the border post everyday.
Of late congestion had become the order of the day at the port with travellers and importers all putting the blame squarely on Zimra and other service providers at the border.
However, Zimra say some of the delays were a result of human resources shortages. Currently, they have a staff complement of 120 whereas they need 400 officers to operate at full strength.
This shortage of manpower has also given leeway to the current crop of Zimra officers who want "push money" to expedite their services.
Musariri’s association has also been urging the Government to re-open the Old Limpopo Bridge under the Beitbridge Efficiency Management Programme to reduce human and vehicular congestion.
They further argued that there was also need for the recapitalisation of the National Railways of Zimbabwe as that was going to ensure a faster and efficient movement of cargo.
The other issue Musariri decried was the proliferation of some government agencies at the border charging exorbitant prices for their services, which created enormous delays in the movement of cargo.
"Some functions and services duplicate each other and we believe there should be a review with some of the revenue collection tasks taken back to Zimra," he said.
He added that his association was also lobbying for local authorities at most ports of entry to avail land for office and house construction for their members. The unavailability of accommodation, he said was also affecting their discharging of duties.
On his recent familiarisation tour of the Beitbridge Border Post, Finance Minister Tendai Biti indicated that 30 percent of Government revenue came from Zimra and from that percentage, 70 percent came from Beitbridge.
In most cases, two or three officers are tasked with clearing travellers either on the green or red route zones. The green route is for those travellers without anything to declare while the red route is for those with something to declare.
Last year, Zimra even took its revenue collection to the country’s major highways and mounted roadblocks as many people sought to evade tedious clearing and customs process at the borders.
It was only after the intervention of the then Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s office Gorden Moyo that the cross border traders were let off the noose.
Zimra had made it a priority to mount roadblocks to search all cross border buses along highways that lead to major cities from Beitbridge border post
This was despite the fact that all the buses would have undergone a thorough search at the border post and endured long hours of waiting to be attended to.
l tupeyo@operamail.com or obert.chifamba@zimpapers.co.zw
published by; The Herald, 6 July 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
Beitbridge transmission upgrading underway
Beitbridge transmission upgrading underway
By Thupeyo Muleya
Transmedia Corporation has started installing state–of-the-art broadcasting equipment at Beitbridge as the company seeks to improve radio reception at the border town.
Workers were seen setting up the transmitting tower and the transmission room yesterday following the arrival of the equipment from South Africa last week.
The transmitter under construction at Beitbridge has the capacity to cover a radius of 80km and plans to install small transmitters for gray areas are reported to be in the pipeline.
Transmedia Corporation chief operations officer Mr Cloud Nyamundanda, who is also overseeing the setting up of the equipment, yesterday said they had since completed the installation of the transmission hardware and the necessary transmission cables. He said they embarked on the project following the availing of US$800 000 by the Government.
"We received the equipment for Beitbridge by mid last week and have since completed fitting the transmission hardware including the transmission cables. At the moment we are working on the transmitting antenna.
"After that we are going to work on the signal feed system, which we hope to complete by the end of this week. We are very positive that we will be testing the systems by the end of the week and also do tests run for a week after which we expect to start full time broadcasting by the first week of June.
"The new state-of-the-art radio transmitters use professional radios to receive signals," he said.
Mr Nyamundanda said they had installed two radio transmitters for Radio Zimbabwe and Power FM and were awaiting the arrival of television transmission equipment from Europe in 12 weeks.
"At the moment we have made it a priority that we start with two radio stations and a television system due to resource constraints. We expect television installation equipment to arrive in the country in 12 weeks.
"I am very confident that by the beginning of August, we will be setting up the television transmitters. For this year, we are setting up transmission for Radio Zimbabwe, Power FM and ZTV and we will look at other two radio stations that are Spot FM and National FM, " he said.
He said they had acquired TV reception equipment, which was digital compact in line with the Sadc deadline to degitalise broadcasting services by 2015.
He, however, said, at the moment they would use the analog TV transmission facility and switch to the digital system at the optima time.
During a recent visit to the site, Transmedia Corporation Board chairman, Dr Paul Chimedza, said they would need US$15 million for degitalising broadcasting services across the country.
Mr Nyamundanda added they were also waiting for the arrival of similar equipment for Plumtree, Mudzi, St Alberts and Victoria Falls in the next 10 weeks.
published by; The Herald, 10 May 2010
www.herald.co.zw
By Thupeyo Muleya
Transmedia Corporation has started installing state–of-the-art broadcasting equipment at Beitbridge as the company seeks to improve radio reception at the border town.
Workers were seen setting up the transmitting tower and the transmission room yesterday following the arrival of the equipment from South Africa last week.
The transmitter under construction at Beitbridge has the capacity to cover a radius of 80km and plans to install small transmitters for gray areas are reported to be in the pipeline.
Transmedia Corporation chief operations officer Mr Cloud Nyamundanda, who is also overseeing the setting up of the equipment, yesterday said they had since completed the installation of the transmission hardware and the necessary transmission cables. He said they embarked on the project following the availing of US$800 000 by the Government.
"We received the equipment for Beitbridge by mid last week and have since completed fitting the transmission hardware including the transmission cables. At the moment we are working on the transmitting antenna.
"After that we are going to work on the signal feed system, which we hope to complete by the end of this week. We are very positive that we will be testing the systems by the end of the week and also do tests run for a week after which we expect to start full time broadcasting by the first week of June.
"The new state-of-the-art radio transmitters use professional radios to receive signals," he said.
Mr Nyamundanda said they had installed two radio transmitters for Radio Zimbabwe and Power FM and were awaiting the arrival of television transmission equipment from Europe in 12 weeks.
"At the moment we have made it a priority that we start with two radio stations and a television system due to resource constraints. We expect television installation equipment to arrive in the country in 12 weeks.
"I am very confident that by the beginning of August, we will be setting up the television transmitters. For this year, we are setting up transmission for Radio Zimbabwe, Power FM and ZTV and we will look at other two radio stations that are Spot FM and National FM, " he said.
He said they had acquired TV reception equipment, which was digital compact in line with the Sadc deadline to degitalise broadcasting services by 2015.
He, however, said, at the moment they would use the analog TV transmission facility and switch to the digital system at the optima time.
During a recent visit to the site, Transmedia Corporation Board chairman, Dr Paul Chimedza, said they would need US$15 million for degitalising broadcasting services across the country.
Mr Nyamundanda added they were also waiting for the arrival of similar equipment for Plumtree, Mudzi, St Alberts and Victoria Falls in the next 10 weeks.
published by; The Herald, 10 May 2010
www.herald.co.zw
Terror suspect arrested at border
Terror suspect arrested at border
From Thupeyo Muleya in BEITBRIDGE
TWO Pakistani illegal immigrants, one of whom is believed to be an international terrorist, were on Sunday night intercepted by Zimbabwean security agents at Beitbridge Border Post as they tried to enter South Africa.
The names of the two are being withheld as investigations continue.
Immigration Department sources said neither was armed when the arrests were made.
"One of the suspects is believed to be a well-known terrorist who is usually based in Santiago," one official said.
Santiago is the capital city of Chile.
It is understood that the two flew from Saudi Arabia to Tanzania where they fraudulently acquired Kenyan passports before connecting to Zimbabwe by road.
Their luck, however, ran out on Sunday night when an alert immigration officer at Beitbridge who discovered that they were using fake passports intercepted them.
"The official alerted the Police Border Control Unit leading to the arrest of the duo.
"They were travelling on a bus that was coming from Harare," another source said.
The two were briefly held in Beitbridge before being transferred to Harare.
Chief police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commi-ssioner Wayne Bvudzijena last night said he did not yet have information on the matter.
He advised The Herald to get back to him today for an update. However, senior immigration officers in both Harare and Beitbridge confirmed the arrest.
An official based in Harare said: "It is still a sensitive issue and is under investigation."
None of the officials would give indications as to what preliminary investigations pointed to or why the duo was going to South Africa.
They also would not say if an international arrest warrant had been issued or what particular acts of terror the suspected terrorist was wanted for and in which countries he was sought.
There had been fears that terrorists might target South Africa as it hosts the 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup.
However, South African police assured the world ahead of the event — which started on June 11 and ends on July 11 — that everything was under control and so far the fears have amounted to nothing.
The Zimbabwe Republic Police also said ahead of the global soccer showcase that they were on high alert to ensure no one used Zimbabwe as a transit route for any mischief in South Africa.
ZRP has also established a World Cup command centre and is liaising with South African police and Interpol on regional security issues.
published by; The Herald , 25 June 2010
www.herald.co.zw
From Thupeyo Muleya in BEITBRIDGE
TWO Pakistani illegal immigrants, one of whom is believed to be an international terrorist, were on Sunday night intercepted by Zimbabwean security agents at Beitbridge Border Post as they tried to enter South Africa.
The names of the two are being withheld as investigations continue.
Immigration Department sources said neither was armed when the arrests were made.
"One of the suspects is believed to be a well-known terrorist who is usually based in Santiago," one official said.
Santiago is the capital city of Chile.
It is understood that the two flew from Saudi Arabia to Tanzania where they fraudulently acquired Kenyan passports before connecting to Zimbabwe by road.
Their luck, however, ran out on Sunday night when an alert immigration officer at Beitbridge who discovered that they were using fake passports intercepted them.
"The official alerted the Police Border Control Unit leading to the arrest of the duo.
"They were travelling on a bus that was coming from Harare," another source said.
The two were briefly held in Beitbridge before being transferred to Harare.
Chief police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commi-ssioner Wayne Bvudzijena last night said he did not yet have information on the matter.
He advised The Herald to get back to him today for an update. However, senior immigration officers in both Harare and Beitbridge confirmed the arrest.
An official based in Harare said: "It is still a sensitive issue and is under investigation."
None of the officials would give indications as to what preliminary investigations pointed to or why the duo was going to South Africa.
They also would not say if an international arrest warrant had been issued or what particular acts of terror the suspected terrorist was wanted for and in which countries he was sought.
There had been fears that terrorists might target South Africa as it hosts the 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup.
However, South African police assured the world ahead of the event — which started on June 11 and ends on July 11 — that everything was under control and so far the fears have amounted to nothing.
The Zimbabwe Republic Police also said ahead of the global soccer showcase that they were on high alert to ensure no one used Zimbabwe as a transit route for any mischief in South Africa.
ZRP has also established a World Cup command centre and is liaising with South African police and Interpol on regional security issues.
published by; The Herald , 25 June 2010
www.herald.co.zw
When water abounds, but thiret rules
When water abounds, but thirst rules
From Thupeyo Muleya in BEITBRIDGE
OVER the past three decades it has been a case of "so near yet so far" for the border town of Beitbridge that despite sitting on the banks of the great Limpopo River and boasting one of the country’s biggest dams, Zhovhe, has had perennial water shortages.
Zhovhe Dam is located 63km west of the town along Umzingwane River and currently holds 133 cubic metres of water while the town lies within a kilometre of the Limpopo River.
Sadly, the town has never been able to take advantage of its proximity to these two water bodies to solve its water problems and supplement the little that comes from Zinwa’s water treatment plant which only operates on emergency basis.
According to the 2002 population census, the town had a population of 22 387 and an estimated 2 570 houses in formal settlements (primarily for Government officials and middle-level private sector staff) and 3 000 in informal settlements.
This number has since increased due to the town’s proximity to South Africa and the hive of economic and commercial activities typical of most ports of entry in Sub Saharan Africa.
The population naturally started ballooning following the construction of the Alfred Beit-Bridge in 1929 and the New Limpopo Bridge in 1995.
Beitbridge Town is a cauldron of many different cultures as it is frequented by people from many countries, with at least 25 000 of them passing through its entry and exit points daily.
Nearly 4 000 heavy trucks also use the border post everyday.
According to the Beitbridge Business Association (BBA) chairman, Mr Salatiel Roy Muleya, the town’s water woes were compounded by Zinwa’s unwillingness to incorporate the local stakeholders in running the town’s water affairs.
"The first point to note is that there is no authoritative body willing to discuss the water issue with us. The parastatal, Zinwa has created an environment where the private sector cannot contribute towards addressing our challenges.
"At one point we secured water treatment chemicals from South Africa but were frustrated by the organisation’s bureaucracy in dealing with the matter.
The association therefore urges Zinwa to incorporate the local stakeholders in running the water affairs, as there is a lot of infrastructure and manpower to keep the town awash with water, he added.
Muleya strongly feels that as long as the residents are not given room to participate in solving the water problems, they (problems) are bound to continue unabated.
The redeeming fact, he added, is that the private sector was ready to assist Zinwa in addressing the water challenges.
He also noted with concern the pace at which the upgrading of the town’s water treatment plant and the construction of the 63-kilometre Zhovhe water canal is progressing.
Everything is going at a snail’s pace, he concluded.
Beitbridge district falls under the Zinwa Umzingwane catchment area, which is administered from Bulawayo and needs a total of 15000 cubic metres of water per day.
"It boggles the mind why our taps run dry yet we have the Limpopo River just a kilometre away and the Zhovhe Dam in our district.
"There is an urgent need for the Government to intervene in our situation because we are operating on an emergency arrangement.
"We do not have a single water reservoir to harness treated water and that water is pumped straight to the consumer. Out of the 15 000 cubic metres that the town needs daily, Zinwa is pumping a third of the amount," said Muleya.
Last year, the Beitbridge community had verbal wars with Zinwa over astronomical water bills yet they were failing to deliver.
They even took people to court only to withdraw the lawsuit after the intervention of the Minister of Water Resources and Infrastructure Development, Sam Sipepa Nkomo.
Muleya added that when the current water treatment plant was constructed, it was meant for less than 20 000 people.
On a sad note, the continued water problems have also contributed to the rapid spread of waterborne diseases chief among them, cholera with at least 5 000 cases reported around Beitbridge in 2008, with 540 people dying from the epidemic.
The first case was reported on November 15, 2008, but the disease rapidly spread across the town.
During the cholera epidemic, the town had to rely on water in bowsers from South Africa courtesy of the 1996 twining agreement between Beitbridge and Musina municipalities.
It is understood that a total of US$3 million would be needed to upgrade the current water treatment plant and the sewer reticulation facilities in the border town.
Efforts to get a comment from Zinwa of the goings on in Beitbridge this week were in vein.
The Matabeleland South Provincial Irrigation Officer, Tamuka Moyo was quoted in recent media reports saying the construction of the 63 km water canal from Zhovhe dam to Beitbridge town would chew a total of US$18 million.
He said a feasibility study and project proposal had already been completed adding that they were yet to receive funds to kick-start the project.
The Zhovhe project was initiated in 1996 following the dam construction and to date it has not taken off due to lack of funding.
"Upon completion the project is expected to benefit resettlement and commercial farmers and end the water problems dogging the town.
"Currently farmers in the district rely on sand abstraction, a method of sucking water from the river and manage to get 20 percent of the water for irrigation purposes while 80 percent is wasted hence the need for a canal which is efficient and reliable," he explained.
Additionally, Moyo indicated that they had since submitted the relevant papers to Government and other departments and are yet to get a response.
"We are therefore appealing through the Government, for assistance to start the project as the Zhovhe Dam has the capacity to irrigate a total of 2520 hectares of communal, resettlement and commercial farmers.
"Furthermore the dam has the capacity to carry 133 million cubic metres of water and is capable of giving a safe yield of 42 million cubic meters." said Moyo.
Moyo said Beitbridge district falls under agricultural natural farming region five, which is suitable for cattle ranching and irrigation crop farming.
He further added that Zhovhe dam was under utilized as it could create the opportunity for farmers and residents alike to use the canal water to irrigate the land for both commercial and domestic purposes and feed the nation.
"You will realise that Beitbridge is a dry area whose rainfall pattern is erratic and the construction of the canal would go a long way in addressing food security and in the process create employment opportunities for many people", he said.
Moyo said construction of the canal would be done in phases and the first phase would cover 10 kilometres, which would benefit resettlement farmers in Bishopstone and Cawood Estates.
The second, third and final phases would have secondary canals meant to assist farmers along the way up to the Beitbridge town.
"We had planned to phase the whole project into three. In fact the whole idea is to benefit farmers resettled along the map of the canal until we get to the Beitbridge town", he added.
In previous attempts the slow progress in implementing the project has been attributed to the bureaucratic bungling by the state procurement board.
In 2004 Vice President Cde Joice Mujuru had to order the immediate release of ZWD250 billion meant for the project during her tour of Beitbridge district to audit progress on the agrarian reforms and capital projects.
It remains to be seen whether anything will be done to harness the abundant water resources around the district.
Published by; The Herald, 27 May 2010
www.herald.co.zw
From Thupeyo Muleya in BEITBRIDGE
OVER the past three decades it has been a case of "so near yet so far" for the border town of Beitbridge that despite sitting on the banks of the great Limpopo River and boasting one of the country’s biggest dams, Zhovhe, has had perennial water shortages.
Zhovhe Dam is located 63km west of the town along Umzingwane River and currently holds 133 cubic metres of water while the town lies within a kilometre of the Limpopo River.
Sadly, the town has never been able to take advantage of its proximity to these two water bodies to solve its water problems and supplement the little that comes from Zinwa’s water treatment plant which only operates on emergency basis.
According to the 2002 population census, the town had a population of 22 387 and an estimated 2 570 houses in formal settlements (primarily for Government officials and middle-level private sector staff) and 3 000 in informal settlements.
This number has since increased due to the town’s proximity to South Africa and the hive of economic and commercial activities typical of most ports of entry in Sub Saharan Africa.
The population naturally started ballooning following the construction of the Alfred Beit-Bridge in 1929 and the New Limpopo Bridge in 1995.
Beitbridge Town is a cauldron of many different cultures as it is frequented by people from many countries, with at least 25 000 of them passing through its entry and exit points daily.
Nearly 4 000 heavy trucks also use the border post everyday.
According to the Beitbridge Business Association (BBA) chairman, Mr Salatiel Roy Muleya, the town’s water woes were compounded by Zinwa’s unwillingness to incorporate the local stakeholders in running the town’s water affairs.
"The first point to note is that there is no authoritative body willing to discuss the water issue with us. The parastatal, Zinwa has created an environment where the private sector cannot contribute towards addressing our challenges.
"At one point we secured water treatment chemicals from South Africa but were frustrated by the organisation’s bureaucracy in dealing with the matter.
The association therefore urges Zinwa to incorporate the local stakeholders in running the water affairs, as there is a lot of infrastructure and manpower to keep the town awash with water, he added.
Muleya strongly feels that as long as the residents are not given room to participate in solving the water problems, they (problems) are bound to continue unabated.
The redeeming fact, he added, is that the private sector was ready to assist Zinwa in addressing the water challenges.
He also noted with concern the pace at which the upgrading of the town’s water treatment plant and the construction of the 63-kilometre Zhovhe water canal is progressing.
Everything is going at a snail’s pace, he concluded.
Beitbridge district falls under the Zinwa Umzingwane catchment area, which is administered from Bulawayo and needs a total of 15000 cubic metres of water per day.
"It boggles the mind why our taps run dry yet we have the Limpopo River just a kilometre away and the Zhovhe Dam in our district.
"There is an urgent need for the Government to intervene in our situation because we are operating on an emergency arrangement.
"We do not have a single water reservoir to harness treated water and that water is pumped straight to the consumer. Out of the 15 000 cubic metres that the town needs daily, Zinwa is pumping a third of the amount," said Muleya.
Last year, the Beitbridge community had verbal wars with Zinwa over astronomical water bills yet they were failing to deliver.
They even took people to court only to withdraw the lawsuit after the intervention of the Minister of Water Resources and Infrastructure Development, Sam Sipepa Nkomo.
Muleya added that when the current water treatment plant was constructed, it was meant for less than 20 000 people.
On a sad note, the continued water problems have also contributed to the rapid spread of waterborne diseases chief among them, cholera with at least 5 000 cases reported around Beitbridge in 2008, with 540 people dying from the epidemic.
The first case was reported on November 15, 2008, but the disease rapidly spread across the town.
During the cholera epidemic, the town had to rely on water in bowsers from South Africa courtesy of the 1996 twining agreement between Beitbridge and Musina municipalities.
It is understood that a total of US$3 million would be needed to upgrade the current water treatment plant and the sewer reticulation facilities in the border town.
Efforts to get a comment from Zinwa of the goings on in Beitbridge this week were in vein.
The Matabeleland South Provincial Irrigation Officer, Tamuka Moyo was quoted in recent media reports saying the construction of the 63 km water canal from Zhovhe dam to Beitbridge town would chew a total of US$18 million.
He said a feasibility study and project proposal had already been completed adding that they were yet to receive funds to kick-start the project.
The Zhovhe project was initiated in 1996 following the dam construction and to date it has not taken off due to lack of funding.
"Upon completion the project is expected to benefit resettlement and commercial farmers and end the water problems dogging the town.
"Currently farmers in the district rely on sand abstraction, a method of sucking water from the river and manage to get 20 percent of the water for irrigation purposes while 80 percent is wasted hence the need for a canal which is efficient and reliable," he explained.
Additionally, Moyo indicated that they had since submitted the relevant papers to Government and other departments and are yet to get a response.
"We are therefore appealing through the Government, for assistance to start the project as the Zhovhe Dam has the capacity to irrigate a total of 2520 hectares of communal, resettlement and commercial farmers.
"Furthermore the dam has the capacity to carry 133 million cubic metres of water and is capable of giving a safe yield of 42 million cubic meters." said Moyo.
Moyo said Beitbridge district falls under agricultural natural farming region five, which is suitable for cattle ranching and irrigation crop farming.
He further added that Zhovhe dam was under utilized as it could create the opportunity for farmers and residents alike to use the canal water to irrigate the land for both commercial and domestic purposes and feed the nation.
"You will realise that Beitbridge is a dry area whose rainfall pattern is erratic and the construction of the canal would go a long way in addressing food security and in the process create employment opportunities for many people", he said.
Moyo said construction of the canal would be done in phases and the first phase would cover 10 kilometres, which would benefit resettlement farmers in Bishopstone and Cawood Estates.
The second, third and final phases would have secondary canals meant to assist farmers along the way up to the Beitbridge town.
"We had planned to phase the whole project into three. In fact the whole idea is to benefit farmers resettled along the map of the canal until we get to the Beitbridge town", he added.
In previous attempts the slow progress in implementing the project has been attributed to the bureaucratic bungling by the state procurement board.
In 2004 Vice President Cde Joice Mujuru had to order the immediate release of ZWD250 billion meant for the project during her tour of Beitbridge district to audit progress on the agrarian reforms and capital projects.
It remains to be seen whether anything will be done to harness the abundant water resources around the district.
Published by; The Herald, 27 May 2010
www.herald.co.zw
Beitbridge: On road towards Zim content
Beitbridge: On road towards Zim content
By Thupeyo Muleya in Beitbridge
Very few will remember when exactly this border town started using the South African Rand as its official currency.
There has always been cross border trading between its residents and their counterparts on the other side of the Limpopo.
Everything about this small border town reeks of South Africa, starting from the airwaves to the numerous dialects that are shared between these juxtaposed communities, a fact that has left many wondering where it actually belongs.
The nearest town to Beitbridge is Musina in South Africa’s Limpopo province that is located 12km south of the Limpopo River, which divides the two countries.
Long before the Zimbabwean Government adopted the multi-currency system in February 2009 at the instigation of the economic meltdown, people of this town had long been using the rand each time they crossed the great divide on business or social calls.
Even though the rest of Zimbabwe use multi currencies such as the US dollar, British Pound and Botswana Pula, here the rand rules as most of the people do their shopping on the other side of the river.
The two nearest towns in inland Zimbabwe are Masvingo and Gwanda, which are 288km to the north and 200km to the west respectively.
Beitbridge, a town dominated by the Venda-speaking people, was declared a district in the early 1970s and before then the town was located 30km west of its current position at a place known as Mtetengwe District, with most of its administration done in Gwanda.
Gwanda is now the provincial capital for Matabeleland South.
According to the 2002 population census, the town had a population of 22 387 and an estimated 2 570 houses in formal settlements (primarily for Government officials and mid-level private sector staff) and 3 000 in informal settlements.
Furthermore, the population started increasing following the construction of the Alfred Beit-Bridge in 1929 and the New Limpopo Bridge in 1995.
Beitbridge town is frequented by people from many countries, with at least 25 000 of them passing through it daily to various destinations.
Nearly 4 000 heavy trucks also utilise the border post every day.
This number has also increased due to the town’s proximity to South Africa and its commercial status as one of the busiest ports of entry in Sub Saharan Africa.
On numerous occasions before the introduction of the new currency regime, the police had been rounding up illegal foreign currency dealers in and around the border town whom the Government accused of fueling the parallel market.
An average of 50 suspects could be arrested and fined for contravening a section of the Exchange Control Act on a daily basis but this has failed to end the trade as they continue to thrive even under the multi currency system.
The majority of the working class here is now pinning their hopes on the government to adopt a single currency; especially the rand, which they say, would rescue them from the illegal forex dealers.
"Everything here is dominated by South Africa ranging from the food, clothes, electrical gadgets, cell phone networks, sport, radio and television reception. You will realise that most of the working people who earn their salaries in US dollars are hard hit by the cross rate system (conversion of currencies).
"Very few shops here are interested in doing transactions in any currency other than the Rand except for Government departments," Christopher Shoko of Dulibadzimu suburb said recently.
Most of the businesses here get their wares from South Africa and so insist on using the Rand on all transactions. The landlords are ripping their tenants off as they charge rentals of as much as R800 per room, which is the equivalent to a US$100.
"We are appealing to the Government to act on this matter to save us. An average worker earns below US$200 and that leaves most of them with nothing to spare after paying rentals. In most cases when people get sick they also prefer getting medical attention in Musina," he said.
Shoko added that it was also a common culture among the natives to seek employment in South Africa, where some of them had relatives stemming from time immemorial.
Communities on both sides of the Limpopo share common historical background especially the Venda, Sotho and Shangani speaking people.
This community has since its inception largely depended on South Africa for radio and television reception which has prompted the government to construct a transmitter in the border town to cater for those services.
Information and Publicity Minister Webster Shamu said recently while on a tour of the Beitbridge transmission station: "Our Constitution assures citizens of the right to impart and receive information.
"That right is realised through investments in media structures such as this transmitter. To deny a community this facility is to undermine a constitutional right.
"With that in mind, the Government of Zimbabwe saw it fit to release US$800 000 towards the construction of sites like this one.
"We anticipate the construction of such sites in all border areas, which should give us a near total coverage of our country in broadcast terms," he said.
The transmitter at Beitbridge covers a radius of 80km and at the moment the residents are only accessing two radios stations, that is Radio Zimbabwe and power FM with the television broadcasting expected to begin this August. There are plans to install smaller transmitters to cater for the whole district.
Home Affairs co-Minister Kembo Mohadi who is also a Member of the House of Assembly for Beitbridge East constituency has since hailed Minister Shamu’s commitment to see to it that all Zimbabweans had access to radio and television services.
"For the past 30 years different Ministers of Information promised to reverse the colonial imbalances, but they could not deliver. You are the only minister who has fulfilled his promise," he said.
The chairperson of the Beitbridge Business Association, Mr Roy Salatiel Muleya said the business community welcomed the new development and called on the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation to put the border town on the map by way of increasing local content.
"We welcome the development, but we would be grateful if ZBC would initiate a project with local content that would market Beitbridge as an investment centre and promote local languages," he said.
It remains to be seen how this community will adapt to the Zimbabwean way of life.
tupeyo@operamail.com
Source; The Herald, 2 July 2010
www.herald.co.zw
By Thupeyo Muleya in Beitbridge
Very few will remember when exactly this border town started using the South African Rand as its official currency.
There has always been cross border trading between its residents and their counterparts on the other side of the Limpopo.
Everything about this small border town reeks of South Africa, starting from the airwaves to the numerous dialects that are shared between these juxtaposed communities, a fact that has left many wondering where it actually belongs.
The nearest town to Beitbridge is Musina in South Africa’s Limpopo province that is located 12km south of the Limpopo River, which divides the two countries.
Long before the Zimbabwean Government adopted the multi-currency system in February 2009 at the instigation of the economic meltdown, people of this town had long been using the rand each time they crossed the great divide on business or social calls.
Even though the rest of Zimbabwe use multi currencies such as the US dollar, British Pound and Botswana Pula, here the rand rules as most of the people do their shopping on the other side of the river.
The two nearest towns in inland Zimbabwe are Masvingo and Gwanda, which are 288km to the north and 200km to the west respectively.
Beitbridge, a town dominated by the Venda-speaking people, was declared a district in the early 1970s and before then the town was located 30km west of its current position at a place known as Mtetengwe District, with most of its administration done in Gwanda.
Gwanda is now the provincial capital for Matabeleland South.
According to the 2002 population census, the town had a population of 22 387 and an estimated 2 570 houses in formal settlements (primarily for Government officials and mid-level private sector staff) and 3 000 in informal settlements.
Furthermore, the population started increasing following the construction of the Alfred Beit-Bridge in 1929 and the New Limpopo Bridge in 1995.
Beitbridge town is frequented by people from many countries, with at least 25 000 of them passing through it daily to various destinations.
Nearly 4 000 heavy trucks also utilise the border post every day.
This number has also increased due to the town’s proximity to South Africa and its commercial status as one of the busiest ports of entry in Sub Saharan Africa.
On numerous occasions before the introduction of the new currency regime, the police had been rounding up illegal foreign currency dealers in and around the border town whom the Government accused of fueling the parallel market.
An average of 50 suspects could be arrested and fined for contravening a section of the Exchange Control Act on a daily basis but this has failed to end the trade as they continue to thrive even under the multi currency system.
The majority of the working class here is now pinning their hopes on the government to adopt a single currency; especially the rand, which they say, would rescue them from the illegal forex dealers.
"Everything here is dominated by South Africa ranging from the food, clothes, electrical gadgets, cell phone networks, sport, radio and television reception. You will realise that most of the working people who earn their salaries in US dollars are hard hit by the cross rate system (conversion of currencies).
"Very few shops here are interested in doing transactions in any currency other than the Rand except for Government departments," Christopher Shoko of Dulibadzimu suburb said recently.
Most of the businesses here get their wares from South Africa and so insist on using the Rand on all transactions. The landlords are ripping their tenants off as they charge rentals of as much as R800 per room, which is the equivalent to a US$100.
"We are appealing to the Government to act on this matter to save us. An average worker earns below US$200 and that leaves most of them with nothing to spare after paying rentals. In most cases when people get sick they also prefer getting medical attention in Musina," he said.
Shoko added that it was also a common culture among the natives to seek employment in South Africa, where some of them had relatives stemming from time immemorial.
Communities on both sides of the Limpopo share common historical background especially the Venda, Sotho and Shangani speaking people.
This community has since its inception largely depended on South Africa for radio and television reception which has prompted the government to construct a transmitter in the border town to cater for those services.
Information and Publicity Minister Webster Shamu said recently while on a tour of the Beitbridge transmission station: "Our Constitution assures citizens of the right to impart and receive information.
"That right is realised through investments in media structures such as this transmitter. To deny a community this facility is to undermine a constitutional right.
"With that in mind, the Government of Zimbabwe saw it fit to release US$800 000 towards the construction of sites like this one.
"We anticipate the construction of such sites in all border areas, which should give us a near total coverage of our country in broadcast terms," he said.
The transmitter at Beitbridge covers a radius of 80km and at the moment the residents are only accessing two radios stations, that is Radio Zimbabwe and power FM with the television broadcasting expected to begin this August. There are plans to install smaller transmitters to cater for the whole district.
Home Affairs co-Minister Kembo Mohadi who is also a Member of the House of Assembly for Beitbridge East constituency has since hailed Minister Shamu’s commitment to see to it that all Zimbabweans had access to radio and television services.
"For the past 30 years different Ministers of Information promised to reverse the colonial imbalances, but they could not deliver. You are the only minister who has fulfilled his promise," he said.
The chairperson of the Beitbridge Business Association, Mr Roy Salatiel Muleya said the business community welcomed the new development and called on the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation to put the border town on the map by way of increasing local content.
"We welcome the development, but we would be grateful if ZBC would initiate a project with local content that would market Beitbridge as an investment centre and promote local languages," he said.
It remains to be seen how this community will adapt to the Zimbabwean way of life.
tupeyo@operamail.com
Source; The Herald, 2 July 2010
www.herald.co.zw
Friday, May 21, 2010
Dinosaur fossils boost for Zim tourism
| Dinosaur fossils boost Zim tourism | |
| Posted: Friday, May 14, 2010 3:43 am | |
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