Zimbabwe: Harare Mayor Accuses Uz of Wasting Water

Harare Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda has accused the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) of being one of the biggest wasteful users of water. The institution recently postponed the opening of the new semester due to water shortages.

According to a report by the Daily News, Masunda was addressing the latest full council meeting and noted that even during the time the UZ was closed for vacation, its consumption of water actually increased.

“UZ has to sort this out through its department of water works so that they reduce consumption,” he was quoted as saying. The meeting is said to have noted that most of the water was being lost through leakages.

Although Masunda said the council was willing to help the UZ by constructing a pipe from Emerald Hill, which will cost $380 000, the university owes council US$2.7 million.

The UZ was meant to have opened on the 27th August but this was postponed to the 10th September. In a statement last month the UZ director of information, Dennis Rwafa, said: “The university and relevant authorities are making all efforts to ensure that by September 10th a consistent supply of water will be available.”

For three years the UZ closed its halls of residence to allow for the rehabilitation and construction of water reservoirs. The residency halls were reopened last year.

The three year closure created a serious accommodation crisis as students were forced to look elsewhere.