Vusumuzi Dube
Online Reporter
THE Ministry of Local Government and Public Works is conducting a fresh review of the Bulawayo City Council’s 2025 budget, following the re-submission of the budget by the local authority on Monday.
The city’s budget had not been approved with the Ministry of Local Government citing critical compliance issues and unresolved concerns raised by stakeholders. Part of the compliance issues included council’s failure to comply with the statutory 70/30 ratio which mandates that 70 percent of municipal budgets be allocated to service delivery and 30 percent to administrative costs.
Minister Daniel Garwe then tasked a three-member committee made of his ministry’s chief finance director, a finance expert from the CZI and the local authority’s director of finance, to work on the grey areas raised and present a position.
In an interview with The Chronicle on Monday, the Ministry’s Director of Communication and Advocacy Mr Gabriel Masvora confirmed the ongoing scrutiny.
“The Ministry has not yet approved the Bulawayo City Council budget. The Ministry received the budget today (Monday) and is now scrutinising it,” said Mr Masvora.
He said that the review aims to ensure adherence to fiscal guidelines and equitable resource allocation.
The council’s initial US$309 million proposal faced fierce backlash from residents and business groups who argued it imposed unsustainable rate hikes amid economic strains.
The backlash forced the council to revise its budget to US$53 million, slashing the initial proposal by 83 percent.
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