ZIMBABWE’S President Emmerson Mnangagwa has declared the uncleanliness of the country’s capital Harare, a state of disaster.
By Kuda Pembere
This was done in terms of section 27(1) of the Civil Protection Act [Chapter 10:06]. Through the Statutory Instrument 140 of 2023, Government expressed concern over the state of environment in Harare Metropolitan Province.
Wheres Government has noted with great concern the deplorable state of cleanliness of the Harare Metropolitan Province, characterised among other things by litter and waste dumps accumulating in business and residential areas of the Province, open burning of garbage and indiscriminate illegal dumping of solid waste and littering.
“AND WHEREAS the local authorities in the Province are un[1]able to manage the waste due, among other reasons, to their failure to invest in waste management infrastructure, and the related equipment and human resources; and to their inefficient collection practices and lack of environmental control systems,” read the SI.
The City of Harare, was ordered to coordinate campaigns, do regular refuse collection and establish designated waste transfer stations.
“For public information it is projected that, to ensure emergency solid waste management is undertaken efficiently during the period that this declaration is in force, the Agency shall— (a) co-ordinate the use of materials and services made available by local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province during the state of disaster;
“ (b) endeavour to remove illegal solid waste dump, by means of a range of activities including mapping, quantification and clearing of illegal waste dumps and direct local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province to establish appropriately designed and designated waste transfer stations;
“(c) direct local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province, under its supervision, to undertake periodic S.I. 140 of 2023 895 refuse collection, consisting of street by street waste collection including sanitary lanes;
“(d) direct local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province, under its supervision, to install bins in streets and public places;
“(e) undertake, together with local authorities within the Harare Metropolitan Province, awareness campaigns through roadshows, radio and television programs and sector specific cluster meetings,” the SI read.
Added the SI, “It is hereby notified, in terms of section 38 of the Act that the Minister has— (a) for the purpose of this declaration, conferred his powers in terms of the Act upon the Minister responsible for Environment, including any power or duty conferred or imposed by or in terms of this Act upon the area civil protection officer for the civil protection area concerned; (b) for the purpose of paragraph (a), authorised the Minister responsible for Environment to confer upon the Agency, and every employee of the Agency designated by it for that purpose, any power or duty conferred or imposed upon an area civil protection officer or other person by or in terms of this Act.”
Harare City Fathers have been a number of times been given ultimatums to clear the garbage by EMA. EMA last year flagged 7 000 illegal dumping sites and filed a High Court application to compel council to collect the garbage.
