The District Development Fund (DDF) is pressing ahead with the rehabilitation of roads and boreholes across the country.
DDF recently received a combined $444 million for emergency rehabilitation of roads and boreholes, and work is underway in almost all provinces as some communities have been cut-off due to bad roads.
For roads maintenance, DDF got $400 million, while the water division received $44 million for Covid-19 interventions and is now using the funds for maintenance and drilling of boreholes.
Permanent Secretary for Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Mr Nick Mangwana on Friday said drilling of boreholes and provision of potable water to the rural population was one of President Mnangagwa’s campaign promises towards 2018 harmonised elections.
“He is quietly fulfilling that promise and people like Mbuya Govetson’s (of Chivi) lives are positively impacted and will never forget him for it,” he tweeted.
“DDF has sunk a borehole at Bere Clinic, Mashava, after the area had gone for three months without the supply of clean water.”
Mbuya Govetson said before the coming of the borehole, they were fetching water from a river and would boil it before consuming it.
In an interview with The Herald on Friday while inspecting progress on the Kwekwe-Mvuma Road rehabilitation exercise, DDF acting director roads, Engineer Goodwell Mapako, said the maintenance will make the roads usable, especially for farmers who were expecting a bumper harvest this season.
He said all roads should be accessible and usable for easier transportation of Covid-19 drugs and vaccines to various destinations across the country.
“As DDF, which is responsible for the maintenance of roads in the country, we have moved in swiftly to address the challenges we are facing in terms of road network,” he said.
“We have received a lot of rain this year and our roads have suffered a lot in terms of damages. We have bridges that have been washed away and roads that have been completely cut off.
“So, following the release of funds from Zinara for routine maintenance, we have embarked on a massive road blitz maintenance where we are targeting those sections which are in dire need of repairs, which are inaccessible to some of the areas.
“We are actually gravelling, opening drains as well as repairing damaged structures. So we are doing this in preparation of the movement of the bumper harvest we are expecting as a country.”
Eng Mapako said they were not waiting for rains to stop and we're trying to make as much progress as possible to keep roads open.
The DDF is responsible for 32 000km of roads nationally and all these receive their share of funds for maintenance.
Presently, DDF is focusing on the worst affected areas wherein each province they target to rehabilitate over 1 000km of roads.
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In terms of providing potable and safe water to the rural populace, DDF national director of water supplies, Engineer Edwin Toriro, said he was targeting to rehabilitate about 10 000 boreholes across the country and drill 500 new ones.
Eng Toriro, who was also inspecting progress on some boreholes being rehabilitated at Umlala Park in Zibagwe District, said district maintenance teams were already working on grounded boreholes using the $44 million availed by the Government towards Covid-19 interventions.
“DDF being a virtual organisation, we look at the disadvantaged and any other development areas declared by the President as areas in need,” he said.
“We are there to serve the disadvantaged and this is what the Government of Zimbabwe is doing through its instruments of development, DDF being one.
“In terms of the nourishment that we received from Treasury, we have got boreholes which are earmarked for rehabilitation. To date, Treasury has disbursed $44 million which we have used to, through the tendering process, buy pipes, rods and other accessories required to enable the institution to roll out its operations. So, the strategy is we have sent out our district maintenance team. We have 62 maintenance teams in the country.”
Priority is given to boreholes in institutions like schools and clinics.
On the Umlala Park borehole, Eng Toriro said they prioritised its immediate rehabilitation because it served schools and the general community
New pipes and a pumping system were being installed to ensure for the next seven years, there would be reliability in terms of water supply.
The community protects the facility and DDF was keen to escalate the service level of the borehole.
There is a plan to install a solar system so that a pipe network to the school could be done. Elevated tanks and standpipes are also being considered. herald.co.zw
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