Martin Muleya
City of Mutare marked a significant milestone today with the commissioning of US$2 million worth of state-of-the-art equipment and a new primary school in Chikanga.
The equipment unveiled included a fire ladder, three refuse trucks, four tipper trucks, an all-terrain Toyota Land Cruiser vehicle acquired from the Ministry of Health and Child Care and two mini buses for the city’s sports academy.
City of Mutare Town Clerk Blessing Chafesuka highlighted the importance of these projects.
“As we gather today, this is a significant moment for our city, commissioning a new school and several pieces of equipment. These projects present a commitment to building a brighter future for our residents. We are proudly opening Chikanga primary 2 school, which will operate as a satellite school under Chikanga primary 1 school,” said Chafesuka.
He emphasized the city’s vision for educational success, noting that the new school follows a successful model similar to Gimboki primary school, where a new block was constructed to accommodate graduating classes.
Chafesuka expressed pride in the team’s progress, mentioning that council has been delivering a school every two years, starting with Hobhouse, followed by Gimboki and now Chikanga.
However, the local authority boss expressed concern about the gap in school coverage in the city, which stands at 51 percent. He stressed the importance of education as a powerful tool in society and lamented the scrapping of the education levy, which he believes will hinder the city’s development pace.
“We introduced an education levy a few years ago to fund the construction of new schools, and it pains my heart that the Minister (Local Government) said no more education levy. This is going to derail the pace we had gathered. As residents and stakeholders we need to review this as we go into budget consultations because, as a local authority, we need resources to deliver,” he added.
Chafesuka added that the city’s next target for school construction was Beira corridor and emphasized council’s commitment to covering the entire city.
