adminFreedom Mupanedemo Midlands Bureau
From as early as 2am, women from Mazvihwa Communal Lands make a beeline for Runde River in rural Zvishavane to fetch water from shallow wells dug on riverbed.
Like the arms of an octopus, several footpaths converge on the river from several villages.
Here, they share the water with their livestock. The only two boreholes that used to service the area since 1984 when they were drilled, have curved in and the pipes have collapsed.
For about five years now, the villagers have had to survive on shallow wells and river bed water.
The villagers have all but given up hope but in February 2020, they woke up to the groggy sounds of a drilling rig. Soon the village turns into joy and celebration as the rig tears into the earth for the precious liquid.
By the end of the day, three boreholes have been drilled, courtesy of the devolution fund.
This is not a script for a documentary but reality that has transformed many lives since the introduction of the devolution funds.
Midlands provincial development coordinator Mr Abiot Maronge said urban and rural district councils in the province are expected to start receiving this year’s devolution funds next week amid revelations that some local authorities were still to exhaust their 2019 allocations.
In an interview yesterday, Mr Maronge said the Midlands province received over $60 million which was disbursed to the 14 local authorities with various people-centric development projects across the province taking shape.
“Devolution is changing lives for the good in the province. Last year central Government disbursed over $60 million which was then distributed among the district and urban councils and from the follow-ups and reports we are getting, most of our councils have completed notable people-centred developmental projects,” he said.
Mr Maronge said some local authorities are still to exhaust their allocations as they were still to agree and identify more developmental projects to embark on.
“From our previous assessments, some local authorities were still to exhaust their allocations but since it was our first year of receiving such funds, they were still deliberating on priority projects but we are going to the districts meeting management and assisting them on planning for these projects which changes people’s lives, he said.
Mr Maronge said Chirumanzu District which had perennial water problems sunk over a dozen boreholes using devolution funds and water woes in the area were now a thing of the past.
He said some local authorities used devolution fund to buy earthmoving equipment and were now beginning to repair roads on their own.
“Most rural district councils in the province chose to purchase equipment for road maintenance and soon the roads in our (Midlands) rural areas will be accessible and you can see the wonderful development projects that were brought about by devolution under the new dispensation,” he said.
Mr Maronge said since January, Minister of State for Midlands Provincial Affairs Senator Larry Mavima had been meeting both rural and urban councils’ management advising them on the efficient use of devolution funds.
“As we speak, the Minister is in Gokwe, where he is meeting Gokwe Town Council and RDCs on devolution.
“He has since met Zvishavane Town Council, Runde and Mberengwa RDCs, among others, while advising those who were still to utilise funds to urgently embark on developmental projects.
Mr Maronge said people in the Midlands were very supportive of devolution.
“We have people in the villages volunteering to offer labour by fetching water and mobilising other resources in the construction of clinics and classroom blocks using devolution funds,” he said.
Online Reporter