Bulawayo Mayor David Coltart has warned that the long-awaited 252-kilometre Gwayi-Shangani–Bulawayo pipeline could take more than two centuries to complete if Government continues to fund it at last year’s rate.
Coltart raised the concern after reports that civil works on the 10-megawatt Gwayi-Shangani mini-hydropower station in Matabeleland North are progressing and are expected to be completed by the end of the year.
While welcoming progress on the power station, he said the City of Bulawayo’s immediate priority is the pipeline that is meant to transport raw water from Gwayi-Shangani Dam to the city.
“Wonderful news but from a City of Bulawayo perspective our real interest is in the construction of the 252km pipeline,” Coltart said on X.
He said the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) had recently put the cost of the pipeline at US$543 million, with no clarity on how it will be financed.
“Last year the government spent some US$2.5 million on the pipeline. If that disbursement rate isn’t improved, it will take 217 years to build the pipeline,” he said.
According to a project progress report dated 10 July 2026, the four major contract packages under the National Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project are now valued at US$554.44 million.
These comprise the pipeline at US$175.14 million, pump stations at US$167.73 million, pipe supply at US$130.33 million and the water treatment plant at US$81.25 million.
The funding shortfall is critical because work on the dam itself has outpaced the infrastructure needed to convey water to Bulawayo.
The dam is 72.4 per cent complete, while the pipeline is only 16 per cent complete and the booster pump stations are 18 per cent complete.
Construction of the pipeline was awarded to 12 contractors in March 2022, with each allocated about 21 kilometres. Work stalled later that year due to inconsistent funding.
The pipeline is designed to deliver 220 megalitres of water per day to Bulawayo and forms the critical link between the dam and the city.
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