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Farirai Machivenyika Senior Reporter
Gweru City Council is seeking investors to partner it in 12 projects that include the development of housing stands, construction of a hospital, and refurbishment of its water works, among others.
The council flighted tenders for the projects in General Notice 2771 of 2022 published in last week’s Government Gazette.
Interested parties are expected to submit their expressions of interest to the council at various dates in January next year.
“City of Gweru is inviting expressions of interest from eligible/qualified investors in terms of Part II (3)(1)( c ) of the Fourth Schedule to the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency Act who wish to enter into joint venture/outright purchase or lease with Council in various projects,” reads part of the notice.
In the first project, Gweru City Council is seeking partners for a joint venture in the development of its quarry and asphalt plant.
The council has two quarry claims 30km from the CBD.
It is also looking for organisations willing to enter into a joint venture or lease any of its three farms that are suitable for aquaculture, horticulture or cattle ranching.
It also has three hotel sites that are 4,5 hectares each and are ideal for meetings, conferences and exhibitions taking advantage of the city’s centrality in the country.
Gweru also intends to rehabilitate and expand Whitewaters and Gwenoro water treatment plants.
“City of Gweru has a built-in water treatment capacity of 67 mega-litres against an unrestricted demand of 100 mega-litres, giving demand deficit of 37 mega-litres,” reads part of the notice.
“Due to the rapid expansion of the city, there is need to upgrade water treatment facilities to cope with current and expected growth of the city. The project will benefit an additional 100 000 residents. The project will explore a various number of options to include public private partnerships, joint ventures and loans.”
Gweru also wants to develop the Senga Housing Project for low density houses comprising of 266 residential units and has also tendered for partners to revive its liquor plant or engage in any other manufacturing at the plant.
“Council’s liquor undertaking, Go Beer, closed the plant, it is still intact but requires major overhaul. Any alternative manufacturing business proposal utilising the premises is acceptable,” said the council.
Other ventures that the Council is on the look out for partners include the establishment of a waste to energy plant, conversion of 11 closed council beer halls into shopping malls or small shops, and other commercial uses.
It also wants to engage in medical tourism through the construction of a 60-bed hospital and shopping mall.
The hospital should meet exceptional international standards with capacity to lure foreigners and be the anchor facility at the mall that would house utilities like pharmacies, doctors’ surgeries and appliance suppliers among others.
The City said interested firms must provide information showing that they are qualified to undertake the selected project(s).
“The short listing criteria shall be based on submission of three traceable signed and stamped trade reference letters on client letterhead for similar projects undertaken, availability of appropriate skills and experience among staff, proof of funding, concept notes and designs and a summarised proposal.
“These are open-ended projects where the investor comes up with a proposal as to how they intend to do it from experience and knowledge. The investor should also be prepared to carry out a feasibility study at own cost which shall be recovered from the project after implementation. City of Gweru’s contribution to the venture shall be the land or resource and all landed infrastructure on each venture and any prior developments,” the City said in the notice.
It also said that during the bidding period, prospective investors may come on the ground, tour around the sites and get an appreciation of the project sites for informed input to their submissions and would then submit their own innovative approach to the project with proposed methodologies, cost and partnership or joint venture arrangements.
The Council also said it would scrutinise all the submitted proposals and short list proposals that better serve both interests of Gweru and those of the investor.
The short list shall comprise of a minimum of three and a maximum of six firms. Each short listed or pre-qualified firm or investor will be required to make a presentation on its proposed concept. Only firms short listed under this process will be invited to submit comprehensive technical and financial proposals on the basis of a complete request for proposal for the selected project.
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