[Previous entry: "Let's ensure peace in West Africa"] [Next entry: "Supreme Court Deals Blow to War on Terror"]

06/28/2004:

"Zimbabwe: Local authorities want land for housing projects"

By Michael Padera, www.herald.co.zw

URBAN local authorities have urged the Government to expeditiously hand over to them land that was acquired under the land reform programme for residential expansion.

The call was one of the 36 resolutions made by local authorities during their just-ended 63rd annual Urban Councils Association of Zimbabwe conference held in Kariba.

Under the land reform exercise, all local authorities were allocated surrounding farms for housing, urban agriculture and industrial development.

"The Department of Physical Planning, local authorities and the private developers should work closely to ensure the speedy delivery of planned land.

"Planning standards should be reviewed with a view to encourage densification of housing units and reduce costs of stands," he said.

An action committee comprising the Government, building societies, banks and local authorities would be established to address housing development and finance issues.

The conference said social housing should be adopted as a policy and given top priority.

"There might be need to now consider establishing a national housing authority. Housing co-operatives and other private developers must be promoted as partners in housing development. However, there is need to come up with a regulatory framework on how these entities should operate," said the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Cde Ignatius Combo.

The conference, however, failed to agree on one resolution which sought to have a woman as one of the association’s deputies.

Delegates felt the resolution had legal implications, as adopting it would mean revisiting the constitution to accommodate the new proposal.

Other delegates, including women, felt election to posts should be based on merit with others urging the women to first seek the people’s mandate by going to their constituencies.

During a question-and-answer session after his address, Cde Chombo said it was difficult to legislate on the quota system and added that elevation of women should be tackled at party level.

"We have deliberate policies in our party to promote women. I do not know about the other parties," he said.

The conference agreed that local authorities should maximise revenue collection and prioritise resource allocation based on income collected.

It was also agreed that local authorities should promote small and medium-scale enterprises including the informal sector as part of their overall economic development.

"In order to reduce the tax burden on ratepayers and to harness the spiralling staff costs, allowances for municipal employees should be tax-free in line with the civil servants," recommended the conference.

Delegates urged the Government to subsidise water to local authorities, a subsidy, which should be passed on to vulnerable groups given that water is a public good.

"There is a need for targeted subsidies on electricity to local authorities which bridges the gaps between the market rate charged by Zesa and an affordable rate to vulnerable groups."

The conference concurred that councillors and civic groups should spearhead public awareness campaigns to reduce vandalism on public utilities and that the engineers’ forum, through UCAZ, prepare a position paper on private sector participation on service delivery.

The meeting also resolved that councils whose assets were taken over by Zesa be allocated appropriate shareholding in the newly-established Zesa Holdings company.

The conference also resolved that all councils draw up plans for rehabilitation of all infrastructure in their respective areas, and submit them to the Cabinet Action Committee on Infrastructure.

Delegates were of the opinion that councils should share information with their residents on service delivery constrains in such areas like water supply and public lighting.

They said the information should not be shared for defensive purposes only but as a way of building communication between councils and residents.

"Councils should demystify their operations."

Elections to choose a new executive would be held in 2008.

The present executive was voted in last year.

Reproduced for fair use only from:
www.herald.co.zw/index.php?id=33319&pubdate=2004-06-28