Zimbabwe's government pledged to keep working with businesses and community groups to house people who've been left out, according to Marian Chombo, the Minister of State for Mashonaland West Provincial Affairs and Devolution. She spoke at a double celebration in Kadoma, marking the city's 25th anniversary and the distribution of 15 buildable plots to residents with disabilities. Professor Kudakwashe Taruberekera, a philanthropist and CEO of Craft Properties, donated the land, with 10 plots going to people with disabilities and five to those living with albinism.
The recipients said getting their land means dodging the discrimination and rough treatment they face as renters. Taruberekera credited President Mnangagwa's push for social...
Bulawayo slashed its budget proposal by $4 million after getting roasted by hotels and businesses over toilet charges that were absolutely wrecking hospitality venues. The city originally wanted $224 million but backed down to $220 million when a hotel complained that charging $15 per water closet meant properties with hundreds of bathrooms were getting destroyed financially.
Council caved and changed the pricing structure, where anything over 10 toilets drops to $8.50 per unit, which saves hotels almost $2 million collectively. They had to make cuts elsewhere by freezing salary bumps, only filling 20 percent of job openings, and chopping travel expenses in half to balance everything out.
The whole mess started because residents and...
Mehluli Moyo is bringing back the Kings Kraal Jazz Festival in Bulawayo after last year's packed debut showed the genre is still pulling crowds. The second edition features Victor Kunonga returning home along with Jeys Marabini, The Outfit Band with Mimmie Tarukwana, Selmor Mtukudzi, and Charles Mahlaba.
Moyo sees the festival as a shop window where performers can land corporate gigs by impressing business types who book jazz acts for their events. He said the cross-regional lineup from different parts of Zimbabwe proved audiences support quality music regardless of where artists come from, and the corporate backing keeps rolling in because companies want this sound at their functions.
The whole concept banks on jazz staying relevant...
Around 136 officers from Zimbabwe's military branches and prison system just wrapped up training at Khumalo Barracks after going through six different programs covering everything from dog handling to cybercrime investigation. Brigadier-General Crispen Mhere Nduku ran the ceremony and told graduates that digital threats are messing with national security and the economy, which is why they need to actually use what they learned instead of just showing up for the diploma.
The biggest group was 87 people who did regimental police training to keep military bases locked down, while smaller crews studied everything from crime scene management to courtroom procedures. Some students got sent out for two weeks of field exercises to practice...
Bulawayo cops are flying drones with a 20-kilometer range to watch over suburbs like Cowdray Park and Pumula from their command center at Ross Camp, and Commissioner Paul Nyathi says the aerial surveillance feeds them live footage they can act on immediately. They grabbed 100 breathalyzers to bust drunk drivers during the holiday season, and anyone rolling around in a busted vehicle is getting their ride impounded on the spot.
The force is telling people to stop posting vacation pics on social media because criminals use that intel to break into empty houses. They mentioned some families got jumped by a knife gang after announcing their party online, and authorities are warning everyone to keep travel plans off the internet while cops...
Gwanda kicked off construction on roads and water systems for the Garikai/Hlalani Kuhle neighborhood after residents dealt with zero infrastructure for years. Provincial Affairs Minister Albert Nguluvhe showed up for the ceremony and said President Mnangagwa is backing the push to get 655 households hooked up with proper utilities, schools, and clinics over the next nine months.
ZimBuild CEO Tinashe Manzungu laid out plans for about 8.6 kilometers of water pipes, 7.2 kilometers of sewer lines, and matching road construction. The whole thing ties into the government's National Development Strategy 2 goal of delivering one million housing units nationwide while regularizing informal settlements instead of just bulldozing them.
Gwanda...
Zimpapers reporters grabbed half the awards at the anti-corruption ceremony hosted by the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission, with Trust Freddy taking best prevention and awareness coverage while Veronica Gwaze scored journalist of the year. Information Minister Jenfan Muswere ran the event and told everyone that beating corruption is critical for hitting upper-middle-income status by 2030, and he wants media outlets to focus more on development stories instead of political drama.
Zacc chair Michael Reza said the commission depends on public support to make anti-corruption work stick, and media narratives shape how people view the whole fight. Freddy credited the new Checkpoint investigations desk at Zimpapers for helping him land the...
The National Gallery of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo just hit 55 years of operation and wrapped up its anniversary celebrations with two exhibitions running until mid-January. The spot has been pushing Zimbabwean art since it started as the Rhodes Centenary Gallery back in 1957, and they're showing off Tonga crafts like stools and beadwork in one display, while another exhibit dumps archival photos and posters documenting the gallery's entire history.
They thanked everyone who stuck around through the decades, from staff to dead artists who trusted them with their work. The place runs under the Ministry of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture, and it handles everything from artist training programs to getting local talent into international...
Freedom Murechu is running as the Zanu-PF pick for Nkulumane Constituency against eight other candidates, and he says the opposition MPs who held the seat for two decades basically ghosted residents instead of fixing water problems or dealing with trash piling up for months. The former provincial youth chair wants to drill solarized boreholes, light up dark streets where people keep getting jumped, and build a youth center to keep kids off drugs.
His campaign pitch centers on getting consultation fees at local clinics dropped from $20 to $5 and creating a constituency development committee that pulls in everyone from vendors to churches. He claims party structures are locked in behind him after he won the primary without competition...
