On Africa Day, Human Rights Lawyers Demand Access To Safe Water

The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) has called on the government to urgently invest in water and sanitation infrastructure, saying shortages and pollution are fuelling disease, inequality and poverty.

In its Africa Day statement on 25 May 2026, ZLHR said access to safe water and sanitation was a fundamental right linked to health, life and dignity.

The group cited recent cholera cases in Zvishavane, raw sewage flowing into Lake Chivero, ongoing water rationing in Bulawayo, and mercury contamination at Lake Alexander near Mutare as evidence of a worsening crisis.

Mercury levels in Lake Alexander were recorded at almost 45 times the national safety threshold due to unregulated artisanal mining, ZLHR said.

The organisation urged the government to prosecute polluters of Lake Chivero, stop new mining licences in catchment areas, and ensure equal access for women, children and marginalised groups.

Section 77 of the Constitution guarantees the right to safe water, ZLHR noted, and the government must act within available resources to realise it.

“Protecting these rights is essential to building a peaceful, inclusive, and prosperous Africa envisioned under Agenda 2063,” the statement said.

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Govt Moves To End The Use Of Mercury In Small-Scale Gold Mining Declare Lake Chivero Pollution A National Disaster – CHRA