Local authorities not acquitting Zinara funds
SIX out of nine local authorities here are not acquitting Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara) funds received for road maintenance and rehabilitation, a Cabinet minister has said.
In an interview on the sidelines of a tour of a 16km Zimuto-Kapota road project in Masvingo on Friday, Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Joel Biggie Matiza said most local authorities were scuttling efforts towards achieving a middle income economy status by 2030 by not acquitting for the money received. He said the new dispensation was committed to improving road network, air and railway infrastructure. In the 2019 budget, Government allocated US$396.3 million towards road network rehabilitation of which Masvingo province got US$59 million. “Here in Masvingo province, Chiredzi Town Council, Chiredzi RDC, Masvingo RDC, Mwenezi RDC, Gutu RDC and Zaka RDC are yet to acquit the funds that they received from Zinara,” said Minister Matiza. The province is also home to Masvingo City, Chivi RDC and Bikita RDC. He said failure to quit the funds was causing unnecessary delays in disbursing other budgeted funds, as road authorities could not get fresh funds before accounting for the previous injections.
“The work ethic in our road authorities needs a drastic change and the new dispensation requires responsive administrators, who work with timelines and deliver critical services to the people. “Good roads help grow the economy and reduce the cost of doing business. While we agree that they have been delays in disbursing funds for road projects, some road authorities are to blame.
“We want to achieve a middle income economy by 2030 and that can only be possible if our infrastructure is up to standard,” he said. Speaking during a stakeholders meeting at a local hotel earlier on, Zinara board chairman Engineer Michael Madanha indicated that it was not the body’s responsibility to hire contractors but it was seized with revenue collection through tollgate fees, funding road rehabilitation projects as well as monitoring the initiatives.