by MANGALISO TSHUMA
BULAWAYO – ZIMBABWE’S second-largest city and once an industrial hub, continues to endure a perennial water crisis that has become both a symbol and consequence of decades of neglect.
Residents live with severe water rationing, sometimes going days or weeks without running water, while authorities recycle excuses that many citizens say no longer hold.
The causes of Bulawayo’s water shortages are well known.
The city lies in a semi-arid region and relies on aging, undersized dams—such as Insiza, Umzingwane and Inyankuni—that were designed decades ago for a much smaller population and industrial base.
Climate change has worsened rainfall patterns, but critics argue that nature is not the main culprit. Instead, they point to the ruling ZANU-PF’s chronic failure to invest in long-term water infrastructure.
Matabeleland North and South are not waterless regions.
Major rivers including the Gwayi, Shangani, Deka and the mighty Zambezi in Matabeleland North, as well as the Umzingwane, Insiza, Thuli and Shashe rivers in Matabeleland South, carry vast volumes of water every rainy season—much of it flowing untapped toward the Indian Ocean.
Water experts say that with properly constructed dams and reservoirs, this water could sustainably supply Bulawayo, Lupane, Gwanda and surrounding communities.
Such infrastructure would be transformative.
Reliable water would unlock irrigation for agriculture, turning Matabeleland into a greenbelt capable of producing food year-round.
It would revive industry in Bulawayo, attract investment, support mining and commercial activity, and ensure consistent domestic water supply.
Tourism, wildlife conservation and environmental restoration would also benefit, creating jobs and stemming migration.
Yet for decades, residents have been promised salvation through grand projects that never materialise. The most notorious is the Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project, repeatedly touted by ZANU-PF since the 1990s.
Its flagship component, the Gwayi–Shangani Dam, remains unfinished after years of delays, funding scandals and shifting timelines.
Each election cycle revives the project in campaign speeches, only for progress to stall once votes are secured.
Voices from Matabeleland say the pattern reflects deeper political marginalisation.
Civic activist and former Bulawayo mayoral candidate voices have consistently argued that ZANU-PF does not prioritise the region’s development.
Community leaders often say their pleas are ignored while resources are channelled elsewhere.
“Water is life, yet our lives are treated as expendable,” is a sentiment frequently echoed by residents during protests and public meetings.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration has failed to reverse this trajectory.
Beyond water, the region suffers from dilapidated tarred roads riddled with potholes, linking towns like Bulawayo, Lupane and Gwanda through unsafe, neglected highways.
The lack of development has had severe social consequences.
Unemployed youths, with no industry or agriculture to absorb them, are pushed into informal trading, migration to South Africa and Botswana, or dangerous illegal activities.
Bulawayo’s water crisis is therefore not just a technical failure—it is a political one.
Until the government commits to completing dams, building reservoirs and treating Matabeleland as an equal stakeholder in national development, the city’s taps will remain dry, and its people will continue to pay the price of broken promises.
