Story by Tafara Chikumira

THE reopening of Torwood Hospital after the injection of devolution funds has breathed a new lease of life to the town of Redcliff, with residents now getting medical attention at their doorstep.

The hospital, which halted operations after the closure of ZISCO Steel in 2008, resumed operations at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The hospital has since undergone massive renovations after central government released devolution funds.

“The reopening of this hospital is a welcome development for us the people of Torwood. We used to face some hurdles in accessing health services,” said a Torwood resident.

“The hospital is proving to be vital to us. When we get critical we just walk in and get the health services. We used to face extra charges of hiring ambulances to ferry us to Kwekwe general hospital,” noted another.

Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution in the Midlands Province, Honourable Owen Ncube has launched the enhanced clean-up exercise in Redcliff where local authorities were implored to channel devolution funds to critical services for the benefit of residents.

“The time for prioritising luxuries over service delivery is over. We want to see good roads in our towns and better services for our people. The main thrust of the Second Republic under the able leadership of His Excellency, Dr Emmerson Mnangagwa is to see the country attain an upper middle-income society earlier than 2030,” he said.

Since the inception of the Second Republic, the country has witnessed massive infrastructure development projects which have brought social amenities such as clinics closer to once marginalised communities.