Online Reporter
Harare is ramping up preparations to host the Intra-African Trade Fair 2029, with the authorities planning a massive redevelopment of the Harare Exhibition Park for hosting the event. Plans to develop a massive 15 000-seater convention centre at the Robert Mugabe Square are underway. The city recently hosted an investment engagement meeting that was attended by business leaders, investors and development partners to solicit partnerships for an anticipated massive renewal programme in preparation for the trade fair. Zimpapers Correspondent REMEMBER DEKETEKE interviewed Harare’s Acting Town Clerk ADVOCATE WARREN CHIWAWA, who outlined an ambitious road map to overhaul Harare’s urban infrastructure, expand hospitality capacity and modernise transport systems ahead of the landmark event. He also spoke about the city’s deep-rooted service delivery challenges — from water and sanitation to roads and governance — and how the council plans to restore efficiency and accountability.
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Q: You recently took over as Harare’s acting town clerk. During the short period that you have been in office, what has been your assessment of the state of Harare, and what immediate interventions are you prioritising to address these challenges?
A: In my first month in office, my assessment has confirmed that Harare is facing deep-rooted challenges that require urgent, disciplined and coordinated intervention.
The issues are not isolated; they cut across financial stability, infrastructure reliability and operational capacity, and they are all directly affecting service delivery to residents.
The most immediate discovery is the city’s financial strain.
Revenue collection remains under pressure; debt levels are high and the mismatch between local currency collections and foreign currency obligations continues to affect the city’s ability to procure essential inputs such as water treatment chemicals and other critical supplies.
This has a direct bearing on service continuity.
Another major concern is the state of water and sanitation infrastructure.
While the city continues to supply water, production remains below optimum levels and distribution is uneven in many suburbs.
Ageing infrastructure, raw water quality challenges and limited resources for repairs are constraining our ability to provide reliable and consistent service to residents.
I have also identified significant backlogs in roads, drainage, traffic management and public lighting. The road network requires sustained rehabilitation, routine maintenance remains insufficient in some areas and a substantial number of streetlights and traffic signals are non-functional.
These deficiencies affect mobility, safety and the overall urban environment.
In addition, the city’s emergency response capacity requires urgent strengthening.
The shortage of fire tenders, ambulances and other essential emergency response equipment presents a serious operational risk and must be addressed as part of our immediate recovery agenda. From this assessment, several priorities have emerged.
Our immediate focus is on stabilising water production and distribution, strengthening revenue collection and financial discipline, accelerating road and drainage maintenance, restoring essential lighting and traffic infrastructure and improving emergency preparedness.
At the same time, we are working to reinforce internal systems, accountability and performance management across the organisation.
Q: Residents often complain that they are paying rates but receiving poor service delivery. What is your response to these concerns?
A. The city values its residents and stakeholders’ feedback and is, therefore, seized with the concerns of residents.
Central to these concerns is the level of service delivery, which is below acceptable levels for the residents of Harare. This disgruntlement has manifested itself in ratepayer apathy towards settling council obligations.
This apathy has a cyclical effect on service delivery as the capacity to fund the same dwindles. We are currently engaged in the rollout of a new ERP (enterprise resource planning) system that is meant to improve operational efficiency and financial management practices in the city.
This has the huge, anticipated impact of restoring confidence among stakeholders with the affairs of the city.
The current revenue collection efficiency averages 55 percent as at May 31, 2026, an improvement from a rate of 48 percent in 2025, but still below sustainable levels for funding adequate service delivery.
The city aims to attain at least 80 percent collection efficiency by the end of the year.
The targeted level of collection will sustain acceptable service levels for our ratepayers.
The City of Harare is grappling with a growing debtors’ book valued at ZiG10,4 billion as of the end of May, of which ZiG6 billion is owed by domestic ratepayers.
We continue engaging our ratepayers with a view to finding common ground and improve the relationship with the city.
To better fund service delivery, and close the infrastructure gap, the city is aggressively engaging an array of stakeholders for possible funding and partnerships across key service sectors of the city. We recently held an oversubscribed investment dialogue in Harare, where various parties expressed interest in working with the city.
We are actively pursuing these potential partnerships to accelerate our service delivery improvement.
Q: Can you give us an update on the progress the council has made in upgrading Harare’s water and sanitation services, particularly at the Morton Jaffray Waterworks, and how these developments are expected to improve water supplies across the city?
A: The City of Harare’s foremost priority remains the delivery of safe, reliable and sustainable water and sanitation services to all residents.
In line with minimum service delivery standards, the council is working to progressively restore full water coverage across the city and to move the system from intermittent supply towards a more reliable and resilient service model.
At the centre of this effort are targeted interventions at the Morton Jaffray Waterworks, which are designed to increase treated water output from the current average of approximately 230 megalitres (ML) per day to 520ML per day.
Achieving this milestone will significantly improve water availability across Harare’s supply zones and support a more predictable distribution framework.
This transformation will have a direct impact on service delivery in the city’s major residential areas. High-density and low-density suburbs alike stand to benefit from a more stable supply regime, with the long-term objective of moving progressively towards continuous water access where system conditions allow.
To unlock and sustain the 520ML/day capacity, the council has identified a package of eight critical capital interventions with a total estimated requirement of US$54,36 million.
These works cover the full value chain of water production and delivery, including raw water supply upgrades, rehabilitation of clarifiers and filters, pumping plant renewal, chemical dosing improvements, bulk electrical infrastructure, alternative treatment technology and sludge reclamation.
The council has adopted a phased implementation approach in recognition of funding realities. At present, the rehabilitation of the filters and pumping plant is underway, as these are the most immediate enablers of increased production and effective transmission into the network. The remaining interventions are being prepared for implementation, and the council is actively pursuing complementary financing mechanisms, including public-private partnerships (PPPs) to close the funding gap and accelerate delivery.
Q: The city has intensified the rollout of a new traffic management system in central Harare. How many vehicles have been impounded by the council since the beginning of the year and what impact has the exercise had on traffic management?
A. It is currently premature to provide definitive statistics on vehicles impounded or to comment on the impact of the AI (artificial intelligence) traffic camera system, as the project remains at the pilot stage.
The initiative is being spearheaded by enforcement agencies at the national level and Government agencies.
However, as the City of Harare, we fully appreciate and support the smart traffic enforcement trajectory that Zimbabwe is taking.
We recognise the potential of this technology to enhance congestion management, improve compliance and create safer roads.
Once the pilot phase is concluded and full operational data is available, detailed statistics and the measurable impact on congestion reduction will be released by the appropriate authorities.
Q: The council has faced criticism over governance, accountability and allegations of corruption over the years. What measures are you putting in place to restore public confidence in the city administration?
A: I acknowledge the concerns that have been raised over the years regarding governance, accountability and allegations of corruption within the City of Harare.
These issues have rightly eroded public confidence and, as the new acting town clerk, I take very seriously the mandate to restore trust in our city administration.
I am implementing the following key measures: a) Strengthening internal controls and oversight
Reinforcing robust financial management systems with clear delegation of authority; and
Mandating regular internal audits with immediate follow-up on findings;
b) Enhancing transparency and public reporting
I am pushing to ensure that we will be up to date on audited accounts by the end of this year.
We are currently undergoing the formal finalisation of the 2022 and 2023 audits, with the audit of 2024 and 2025 financial accounts simultaneously underway and expected to be finalised by the end of July 2026.
Implementation of audit recommendations will also be prioritised and tracked religiously.
Holding regular stakeholder engagement sessions with residents, ward councillors and civil society will also be done.
c) Reforming procurement processes
Enforcing strict adherence to the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act.
d) Accountability mechanisms
Introducing clear performance contracts for all senior management with measurable deliverables. City of Harare directors, managers and middle managers have signed performance contracts for 2026, and we aim to cascade this to lower levels through the implementation of performance trackers. We will ensure that performance evaluation is done and we will be guided by the rewards and sanctions framework, as promulgated in Statutory Instrument (SI) 69 of 2026.
Ensuring timely investigation and public reporting on all corruption allegations.
e) Capacity building and culture change
Conducting mandatory ethics, integrity and anti-corruption training for all staff. We will engage with the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) for the training of the Integrity Committee and eventually signing of integrity pledges by councillors and the executives of the council.
Promoting a culture of accountability where performance is rewarded and misconduct is addressed decisively. I have made reference to SI 69 of 2026, and we will be developing our own performance management policy so that top performers are rewarded whilst non-performers are punished.
Building professional competence through continuous development programmes for the administration: this is critical.
f) Collaborative governance
Working closely with the office of the Mayor and councillors to ensure alignment between policy and implementation.
Engaging with national oversight bodies, including ZACC, for independent scrutiny.
Partnering with civil society and the media as watchdogs to strengthen accountability ecosystems. We have already engaged residents’ associations to work with us in encouraging members of their constituencies to pay so that we are able to provide services as stipulated in our principal Act and the Constitution of the Republic of Zimbabwe.
Restoring public confidence is not a one-off exercise but a sustained commitment. I am determined to lead an administration that is transparent, accountable and driven by service delivery.
The people of Harare deserve a city council that they can trust, and I am committed to making that reality through measurable actions, not just promises.
Q: Harare is preparing to host the 2029 Intra-African Trade Fair. What infrastructure projects is the council prioritising before the showpiece event?
A: Zimbabwe’s selection to host the Intra-African Trade Fair Company Headquarters (IATFCO Secretariat) and the landmark 2029 Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF 2029) is a great economic opportunity for Harare.
This event positions our city as the primary gateway to a unified African market of 1,4 billion people with a combined GDP (gross domestic product) exceeding US$3,5 trillion.
To successfully host an event of this magnitude — historically attracting over 2 100 exhibitors and upwards of 110 000 international delegates — Harare must rapidly modernise its urban landscape.
Let me advise at the onset that this programme is being spearheaded by the Office of the President and Cabinet through the office of Deputy Chief Secretary Zvinechimwe Churu, who chairs the meetings on updates, and Harare is part of the committee actively preparing for the IATFCO.
To match international standards demonstrated by previous host cities like Cairo, Durban and Algiers, we are advancing a multi-sector capital development agenda focused on the MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) sector and urban mobility.
The establishment of the IATFCO Secretariat has exposed a critical gap: Harare currently faces a shortfall of approximately 11 000 hotel rooms.
Over the next three years, priority is on developing a world-class convention centre with 8 000 to 15 000 seating capacity to anchor plenary sessions and continental buyer-seller forums. This is being spearheaded by the Zimbabwe Agricultural Show Society.
We also need high-end hospitality investment, including three-star and above hotels and a flagship 200-bed hotel with at least 10 presidential suites for Heads of State and dignitaries.
There is also need for modern exhibition facilities with integrated restaurants and supportive amenities to enrich the delegate experience.
We need to pursue PPP models — including lease-financed PPPs with private developers — to establish integrated zones featuring retail malls, cultural centres and extensive parking, rather than relying solely on municipal funding.
Given the projected volume of international and local traffic, our transport network must be transformed.
Harare light rail network: Initiating spatial planning and construction frameworks to connect key economic nodes, hospitality hubs and trade fair grounds.
Coordinated growth corridors: Integrating transport with water, sewer, energy and digital infrastructure along designated metropolitan corridors to guarantee uninterrupted services.
Tinaye Agere