Zimpapers Logo

Auxilia Katongomara Chronicle Reporter
THE Bulawayo City Council plans to borrow $37 million from the African Development Bank to fund proposed water and sewer works scheduled to start next year. The local authority has already presented its proposal for the loan application to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development.

According to the latest council minutes, the director of engineering services, Engineer Simela Dube, said the objective of the project was to improve municipal water supplies and sewage services.

Dube said a Project Implementation Team (PIT) within the municipality would be in charge of implementing the project. Acting Town Clerk Sikhangele Zhou said council had been in talks with the African Development Bank since February 2015.

“The proposal was presented to the Ministry of Finance on the 10th of September 2015 in Harare.

“The final decision of the bank board will be known in December 2015. If approved, the project will be implemented over a period of four years between January 2016 and December 2019 using existing structures,” she said.

Zhou said the government and the City of Bulawayo were required to provide 10 percent of the funding.

Councillors recommended that the city should provide its share of the 10 percent contribution once the bank approves the project’s budget.

“Council takes appropriate action to procure the services of a Project Technical Expert, a project procurement expert and an Engineering Consultancy Firm as guided by the bank.

“Confirmation of the appointments to be subject to Board approval of the project,” read the report.

In July, the local authority disclosed that it had secured about $4,7 million to rehabilitate nine sewer treatment plants.

The plants included Aisleby 1 ($578,000), Aisleby 2 ($755,000), Aisleby 3 ($265,000), SAST ($1,227,000), Thorngrove ($1,227,300), Luveve ($309,000), Waterford ($65 000), Magwegwe Ponds ($150,000) and Cowdray Park Ponds for ($500,000).