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Trust Freddy
Herald Correspondent
Harare City Council, the only local authority in the country yet to submit a Master Plan, has been given an ultimatum by the Government to submit its comprehensive draft master plan by November 20, or face dire consequences.
HCC, which faces disciplinary action against all councillors plus eight in the top tier of officials, is seeking permission to pay about US$1,1 million it owes its planning contractor on a tender awarded late in the planning process.
In a letter addressed to Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume, Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe said non-compliance with the November 20 deadline would necessitate disciplinary measures against council and its senior management, specifically officials responsible for the master plan’s development.
These include officials from the office of the town clerk, chamber secretary, human capital, ICT, legal, procurement, spatial planning, and finance.
“It has come to my attention that the City of Harare submitted a place-holder masterplan document that did not quite meet the standard as per the dictates of the Regional Town and Country Planning Act,” Minister Garwe said in a letter dated October 17.
“In subsequent meetings, Harare City promised to turn in an acceptable masterplan document within the shortest time possible to allow for placement of the draft masterplan on public exhibit in October 2024.
“I am now informed that the process of crafting the masterplan is at a snail’s pace and is unlikely to be concluded this fiscal year, given the statutory periods required for public display and attending to stakeholders’ comments and inputs.”
Minister Garwe said the November 20 deadline was non-negotiable as the blueprint by President Mnangagwa was instructive on the need for compliance with its target outputs and set timelines to ensure that service delivery standards were met for the attainment of Vision 2030.
He also warned that the leniency shown when council turned in a place-holder document would not be shown again.
“In light of the foregoing, I now direct your council to expedite all outstanding plan preparation processes and to submit council’s comprehensive draft Master Plan on or before November 20 2024 without fail. If the Harare Master Plan will not be completed and placed on public display by November 20 2024, I shall regard that as a gross miscarriage of a critical statutory obligation by the city council, which is untenable and overly unacceptable.
“Further, failure to meet the deadline will leave my office with no other option but to take stern action against the whole council and all managers who are involved in the production of the master plan, that is the office of the town clerk, chamber secretary, human capital, ICT, legal, procurement, spatial planning and finance, for their failure to have a whole of council approach to delivering the master plan.”
When contacted for comment, Harare Mayor, Councillor Mafume said the council had written to the Ministry of Local Government, requesting approval for an advance payment of over US$1 million that had to be paid to the contractor.
This payment was expected to facilitate the commencement of work, data collection, and detailed studies of the planning area for the Harare Master Plan.
“Authority is hereby sought to process an advance payment of US$I 142 357,53 to Development Studio Africa Pvt Ltd as per the requirements of Section 19 (1) (a) of the Public Finance Management (General) Regulations, 2019.
“The payment is for item 2 in Clause 8 of the attached contract for the commencement of work, data collection and commissioning of detailed studies of the planning area for the Harare Master Plan. The contractor has submitted a bank guarantee from BancABC of US$ 1 142 357,53,” reads part of the letter.
In November 2023, President Mnangagwa directed all 92 of the country’s councils to develop master plans by June 30, 2024, to curb the growth of haphazard settlements.
While most local authorities across Zimbabwe engaged consultants as early as January 2023, Harare City only announced the award of a tender for the master plan on June 6, less than a month before the initial June 30, 2024 deadline.
Harare City, whose masterplan was last updated in 1993, is still in the woods, apparently scrambling to come up with one, four months after pleading for a deadline extension.
Ends
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