Story by Tafara Chikumira
GOVERNMENT has commissioned a skip bin truck and a fleet of motorbikes for Kwekwe City Council, in a move aimed at strengthening service delivery and advancing the smart city agenda by 2030.
The vehicles are part of broader devolution and decentralisation efforts under the Second Republic, which seek to improve operational efficiency and accountability within local authorities.
Councillors in Kwekwe said the additional mobility would enhance their capacity to respond to community needs and improve visibility across wards.
“It is a critical step being initiated by our President to help us with mobility issues. We need to move around the constituency doing work, and today we have been granted the opportunity to do our work at ease,” Ward 5 Councillor, Tapuwanashe Muganho said.
“Today, we have been granted the opportunity to be visible in our communities. The motorbikes have trailers, which makes it easy to distribute some foodstuffs and all the goodies to beneficiaries,” Proportion Representation Councillor, Dieless Muradzikwa noted.
“We have been given a big opportunity to at least show our capabilities in our constituencies. We have people who require our services, and the motorcycles can also ferry people to critical meetings and events,” Deputy Mayor for Kwekwe City Council, Janet Ticharinga stated.
Midlands Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Honourable Owen Ncube, said the initiative aligns with Government’s devolution policy framework introduced in November 2017 under President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
“Ladies and gentlemen, since its inception in November 2017, the Second Republic under the astute leadership of His Excellency the President, adopted the devolution and decentralisation agenda, which fully supports efficient revenue collection by local authorities as a basis for timeous provision of quality, accessible and affordable services to residents and other stakeholders among them vendors, investors youths women church fraternity and persons with disabilities as provided under section 22 of our constitution,” he said.
The need to improve service delivery by local authorities feeds into the country’s economic blue print, the National Development Strategy 2 pillar of regional development and inclusivity through devolution and decentralisation.
