Online Reporter
Sifelani Tsiko, Fact Check Editor
The death of Dr Sydney Zikhuzo Gata -the first black general manager of the then Electricity Supply Company (ESC) – (1981-85) aged 79 on July 3, has elicited mixed reactions with many recalling his significant contribution to the country’s energy and engineering sectors.
He will be remembered for holding the ZESA Holdings chairmanship (2001 to 2006) and again from November 2019 to July 2025 when he died and for driving the national conversation around energy management.
In this report, we trace the life of this energy management veteran and his involvement in the transformation and development of the country’s energy and engineering landscape. Dr Gata who was declared a national hero, helped shape a strong national voice for energy efficiency.
Early years
Dr Sydney Gata was born in 1948 in Marandellas (now Marondera) and did his A Levels in Zimbabwe before leaving for Canada to study science at Guelph University.
He later attended the University of Windsor in Ontario, studying chemical engineering. After graduating he returned to Africa, spending a year teaching in Botswana. In 1975 he went to Britain where he taught at a college in Chelsea. He later did his masters’ degree (1976) and PhD (1980) studies at the City University.
Dr Gata completed a post graduate diploma in business studies from City of London Polytechnic in 1980 after his PhD. In between his academic career, he was a lecturer at Chelsea College of Aeronautical and Automobile Engineering (UK).
From 1978 to 1980, Dr Gata worked as an analyst programmer with Computer Consortium Services Ltd and at Martin Vorhees Associates, UK.
After independence in 1980, Dr Gata joined the University of Zimbabwe’s engineering faculty. He was later a deputy secretary for vocational and technical training in the Ministry of Manpower and Planning and Development before moving to the Electricity Supply Commission.
Before that he had spent two years at the UZ as a lecturer. “Ibbo Mandaza, then permanent secretary in the same ministry recruited me from UZ without even consulting me, by that time this was the most critical ministry because of labour flight which followed with attainment of majority rule,” Dr Gata said in an interview in 2003.
An innovator
In 1981, Dr Gata, at the age of 33, successfully designed an all-weather solar heating system. At the time, it was a breakthrough finding a solution that hampered solar heating devices in Britain from harnessing solar energy in winter.
This system was invented and tested by Dr Gata under the supervision of Dr John Simonsen of the mechanical engineering department of City University. At the time, he had joined the University of Zimbabwe’s engineering faculty where he was also heavily involved in research on solar – powered irrigation systems including solar refrigeration systems for rural areas.
“This would be ideal for the rural areas where there is no electricity. The system would use the same paraffin powered fridges but would replace the paraffin with solar power. These fridges could be used in rural clinics and hospitals and by cooperative farmers to keep goods fresh before bringing them into the market,” he said way back then before the new wave of solar energy craze had swept into the country.
At the time, he felt strongly that although the initial costs of installing a domestic solar heating system were prohibitive, solar energy had a great future in Zimbabwe. His vision for solar energy in Zimbabwe has grown widely and the country has embraced solar energy to cope with diverse energy demands.
Appointment as general manager: Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Commission
In 1983, he was appointed as the head of the ZESC – at a time when the energy sector was dominated by whites and who were at the time leaving the country in droves. Dr Gata was instrumental in the transformation of the ZESC into the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA).
At the time, there were six power authorities that included the Central African Power Corporation, the Electricity Supply Commission and the electricity undertakings belonging to the cities of Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru and Mutare. He was determined to create a new single power authority to utilise the country’s energy resources efficiently.
“This plan will be updated as and when necessary to take into account the changing load growth patterns, estimated future project costs and potential power imports from other SADCC countries,” he said.
Dr Gata drove the country’s new energy development trajectory which sought to promote manpower development and training to reduce dependence on expatriate staff, improve coordination and management of energy projects for railway, rural and urban areas and the development of the Wankie Thermal Power Station.
He wanted to see the training of more black engineers and artisans in the energy sector. In the early 1980s, he was involved in the launching of the $4 million growth point power plan. As the new ZESA general manager, he played an instrumental role in the commissioning of Hwange Power Station Stage 1 and Stage 2 – widely seen as a significant milestone on long term power development for the country.
Dr Gata is also widely credited for the decentralisation and unbundling of ZESA corporate structure. He oversaw the unbundling of ZESA into seven commercial entities.
May 1987 – Dr Zikhuzo Sydney Gata marries Ntombana Regina Mugabe – younger sister of then Prime Minister Robert Mugabe and the wedding is held at Belvedere Teachers’ College. The couple had five children. After divorcing in 2022, he married Angeline Mayahle, now Primary and Secondary Education deputy minister. Dr Gata is survived by his wife, children and grandchildren.
1991 – Resigns from ZESA as the general manager. Eng Simbarashe Mangwengwende took over as head in 1991. AS a businessman and consultant in South Africa, Dr Gata worked as a technical advisor on a number of local, regional and international energy projects.
March 2000 – Dr Gata bounced back as the new chairman of ZESA. He assumed the role during the most difficult time when ZESA was undergoing comprehensive transformation. “I attribute my return (to Zesa) to greater participation in key energy and power initiatives at the highest level,” he said then. He had spent nearly a decade away working on a number of energy and technology development projects around the world.
Energy sector development: Local, regional and global
Armed with vast experience, Dr Gata presented numerous papers on power, energy, engineering and project financing sectors in Zimbabwe and outside – at regional and international levels. He was extensively involved in several World Energy Council programmes where he served as coordinator for Africa. He also served as director of the World Energy Council in South Africa prior to returning to Zimbabwe in 1996. He worked as a board member of various institutions and companies, at local, regional and international level.
July 2004 – Dr Sydney Gata is awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Zimbabwe Institution of Engineers (ZIE) for advancing engineering in the country through the rural electrification project and support to the profession.
June 2005 – Dr Gata elected secretary for transport and welfare – ZANU –PF
2005 – 2025. He worked in various capacities at local, regional and international levels, striving to mobilise resources for the country’s energy sector. He oversaw the commissioning of Hwange power generation units 7 and 8 which added a combined 600 MW to the grid.
Dr Gata is widely credited for spearheading the Hwange Power Station Project Stage One of 480MW and Stage Two of 440MW and the development of the Main 330kV HV-AC Transmission System and Regional Interconnectors, Zimbabwe’s National and Regional (SCADA) Power System Control Centres Development, Urban and Rural Electrification Master-Plan Developments, Amalgamation of the 6x Electricity Undertakings in Zimbabwe into a Single Authority (ZESA). Gata was also the founding chairman of the Inception Committee for the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).
President mourns Gata
President Mnangagwa described Dr Gata as a committed figure who dedicated his life to providing energy solutions and infrastructure development for the nation.
“He was a devoted and eminent cutting-edge engineer and educationist who made his mark both in theory and practice in Zimbabwe and beyond in a career that spanned decades in academia, engineering and public service,” he said.
