Zimbabwe’s Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona says work on the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls road will resume at full scale by mid-October, as the government seeks to improve the route ahead of the 2027 Cricket World Cup.
The road is among key transport links expected to serve visitors travelling to Victoria Falls, one of the three Zimbabwean cities set to host matches alongside Harare and Bulawayo.
Responding to a question from Senator Solani Moyo in Parliament, Mhona said rehabilitation works on the road had stalled because of delays in payments to contractors.
“We are so excited in the Ministry that we now have a solution to this road,” Mhona said.
He said the government was pursuing a public-private partnership (PPP) model for the broader Beitbridge-Bulawayo-Victoria Falls corridor, which covers about 750 kilometres.
For the immediate rehabilitation programme, Mhona said eight contractors had been allocated sections of the 440-kilometre road network, with each contractor responsible for about 51 kilometres.
He acknowledged that progress had been below expectations because of the stalled works.
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The minister said the government was now turning to an infrastructure bond to mobilise funding from local banks, with CBZ involved in arranging financing from other financial institutions.
“We are in the process of disbursements,” Mhona said, adding that the government had disbursed US$20 million the previous week towards the Harare-Beitbridge road.
According to Mhona, the eight contractors working on the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls road were expected to receive payments the following week, with the minister saying he would follow up to ensure they were back on site.
“I want to assure Sen. Moyo that we are back in terms of rehabilitating this very important road,” he said.
Mhona said construction activity was expected to be operating at full capacity by mid-October and that the government did not anticipate another stoppage.
Senator Moyo had asked whether the Victoria Falls road would be completed in time for the 2027 Cricket World Cup, saying visitors would need reliable access to the city during the tournament.
Mhona, however, framed the immediate objective as making the road “trafficable” for the tournament, while the larger rehabilitation of the Beitbridge-Bulawayo-Victoria Falls corridor would be pursued through PPP arrangements.
The minister also said the government’s infrastructure bond would continue to be used to finance rehabilitation of the country’s other major roads.
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