daniel chigunwe
Farirai Machivenyika
Senior Reporter
NEGOTIATIONS between Government and a potential investor for the rehabilitation of the Harare-Nyamapanda Highway and the Nyamapanda Border Post are underway, Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister, Felix Mhonda, has said.
Minister Mhona said this in Parliament last week.
He said the negotiations, with the yet to be named investor, were at an advanced stage and construction is expected to begin in the coming few months.
“I will hasten to address the question, which is of national interest and also to appraise Parliament that indeed we have got an investor who has earmarked that specific road.
“It is going to start from E.D. Mnangagwa Road, which was known as Enterprise, at the intersection of Samora Machel and E.D. Mnangagwa (Road). That is where we are going to be widening the road up until Nyamapanda Border Post. Also, the border post will be rehabilitated, just to mirror what we have at Beitbridge and also that we are going to do that at Chirundu and Forbes border posts as well.”
Minister Mhona said negotiations were at an advanced stage and that the concession agreement would be signed soon.
“We are in the final stages now regarding the concession agreement, where we are going to be having tollgates and the investor is going to be collecting his funding through tolling.
“We are happy that such kind of models are what we are desiring as a ministry so that we lessen the burden on the fiscus. If possible, we can have such a number of concession agreements in a manner that would enhance the Ministry to move and execute with speed in terms of rehabilitating our roads,” Minister Mhona said.
The 235,8km Harare-Nyamapanda highway, which links Zimbabwe with Mozambique and Malawi, has been affected by an increase in traffic, especially haulage trucks transporting black granite from Murehwa and Mutoko.
Government has prioritised rehabilitation of major highways that include the Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge highway and the Harare-Chirundu highway.
The Harare-Mutare dualisation is also in progress, with a 46km stretch between Harare and Marondera already completed and opened to traffic.
Many other key highways are being rehabilitated, including the Beitbridge-Bulawayo-Victoria Falls, as good roads are critical for the movement of goods.
The Beitbridge Border Post has also been refurbished and modernised into a world class facility in a US$300 million Build Operate and Transfer agreement between Government and the Zimborders Consortium.
Infrastructure development is at the heart of the Second Republic, which is in line with the aspiration of attaining an empowered upper middle income society.
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