Vusumuzi Dube
Raymond Jaravaza, [email protected]
IN a major boost to the city’s housing delivery efforts, the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) on Friday commissioned 650 medium-density serviced stands in Mahatshula East, developed at a cost of US$3,9 million through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) with Enock Construction and Earth Moving Equipment.
The servicing, which included installing water and sewer reticulation systems, street lighting and electricity transmission lines, is being hailed as a model that should be adopted by local authorities in order to address the housing backlog and protect homeseekers from being short-changed by land barons.
Bulawayo’s housing backlog stands at 144 000 units.
Under the PPP arrangement, Enock Construction and Earth Moving Equipment financed, designed and executed the project in four phases while BCC provided oversight during pre-development, development and post-development stages.
Upon completion, 10,5 percent of the stands will be allocated to council, with the developer retaining the remainder to recover investment costs.
Although servicing was initially scheduled for completion in October last year and later extended to December this year due to unforeseen challenges such as underground water and a nationwide cement shortage in late 2023, the developer delivered the project four months ahead of the revised timeline.
Acting BCC director of works, Engineer Methuseli Dibidi, said they were responsible for overseeing the pre-development, development and post-development phases of the project. The project was completed in four phases.
Phase 1, comprising 100 stands, was commissioned in December 2023. Phase 2, with 155 stands, reached 99 percent completion in June last year, pending transformer connections. Phase 3 (247 stands) and Phase 4 (148 stands) are now complete at 95 percent and 90 percent respectively, with final touches underway.
Eng Dibidi said the scope of work for servicing the 650 stands included the design, financing, roads construction, installation of water and sewer reticulation systems, street lights and installation of electricity transmission lines.
“The estimated value of the completed works is US$3,9 million. The project commenced in March 2023 and was scheduled to be completed by 31 October 2024. However, due to unforeseen ground conditions and other contributing factors, the developer applied for an extension of time and was granted up to the end of December 2025,” he said.
Enock Construction and Earth Moving Equipment project manager Mr Thabani Ndlovu said the successful completion of the project is a testimony of what can be achieved when council and land developers work together.
“When we began this journey, we set out with a clear objective, which was to transform land into liveable and well-serviced communities. Today, the delivery of roads, water and sewer reticulation systems for these 650 stands ensures that hundreds of families will soon have a place to call home.
“A place where they can build their future with confidence and dignity,” he said.
Mr Ndlovu said this achievement would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of engineers, foremen and other stakeholders.
“As with many large-scale infrastructure projects, we faced several challenges during construction such as underground water, which needed constant pumping. The country experienced shortages of cement in November 2023, but when the situation improved, we accelerated work,” he said.
“Enock Construction and Earth Moving Equipment celebrates this handover with pride, knowing that we have delivered not just serviced land, but a dream to homeseekers.”
In a speech read on his behalf by deputy mayor, Councillor Edwin Ndlovu, Bulawayo mayor Councillor David Coltart said the project aligns with BCC’s new residential development guidelines, which now require not only water, sewer and roads but also street lighting and electricity before stands are handed over to homeseekers.
“This marks a shift from the past and responds to residents’ needs for safe, well-serviced homes. Our collaboration with private developers is vital to reducing the backlog, and with over 10 000 residential stands on the market, we are optimistic about the future,” he said.
“Council is proud that Enock Construction and Earth Moving Equipment has completed the servicing of 650 stands within the agreed time frames. This is a significant achievement that deserves our commendation as the Bulawayo City Council.”
The project aligns with the National Housing Delivery Programme under the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1), which initially targeted 220 000 housing units by 2025 and later revised to one million units.
Last week, Housing and Social Amenities Minister Zhemu Soda revealed that 70 percent of the revised one million housing units had already been built across the country, with the Government confident of surpassing the ambitious target set under the NDS1.
The Government has encouraged councils to take advantage of the PPPs to mobilise private sector capital for housing delivery in order to ease their financial burden.
Online Reporter