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THE imminent completion of Lupane Government Complex is set to affirm Lupane as the provincial capital of Matabeleland North, improve service delivery in the province and facilitate the implementation of the devolution agenda.

The relocation of Matabeleland North civil servants to Lupane as construction of the complex is now 88 percent complete, is a much welcome development that will save resources by cutting on travel.

Also, the development and economy of Lupane rests on the shoulders of a growing middle-class population.

Lupane-Bubi and Gwayi-Shangani dams, Lupane State University (LSU) and the Lupane Government Complex are major milestones in transforming the face of Lupane.

Lupane-Bubi Dam supplies water to Lupane residents, LSU and provides irrigation water for 180 hectares.

The water treatment plant was constructed by Zinwa and has a holding capacity of 40 million cubic meters.

The 653 million cubic metres Lake Gwayi-Shangani is expected to provide a permanent solution to water challenges in Bulawayo and the rest of Matabeleland.

After receiving a $4,5 billion boost from Government, contractors are optimistic that they will meet the December 2021 deadline.

As we reported yesterday, the construction of the Lupane Government Complex had been dragging for years but since the coming in of the Second Republic, neglected infrastructural development projects are being revived.

President Mnangagwa has been championing the devolution agenda and in due course people in Matabeleland North who have been travelling to Bulawayo for critical services, will no longer be doing so.

Matabeleland North Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Richard Moyo said it was critical for the Government in the province to move to its capital in Lupane: “I’ve been lobbying for the completion of the Government Complex.

It does not augur well to be running Matabeleland North from another province. We want to service the people from within their locality hence it is an important step to know that the complex will be completed by year end. This will cut distances that are travelled by our communities, some of them who travel all the way from Binga and Nkayi to get Government services in Bulawayo.”

Matabeleland North has been developing at an amazing rate since the coming in of the Second Republic.

In Hwange, coal, energy and infrastructure projects have seen massive investment and employment creation.

Victoria Falls, the country’s tourism capital, was declared a city in December last year. The first city in Matabeleland North is also the first city based on tourism in the country.

These milestones reached by Matabeleland North, the envisaged growth in GDP as well as massive infrastructure projects require a hands-on approach that can only be achieved when all officials relocate to the province.

We hail Government in the Second Republic for speeding up the construction of Lupane Government Complex.

There was a lot of dilly-dallying under the previous Government when it came to relocating to Lupane and in turn, working from Bulawayo affected service delivery.

The new work ethic in President Mnangagwa’s administration is the gamechanger that will see Matabeleland North becoming the country’s economic hub.