HARARE - The MDC led-Harare City Council has secured a US$150 million loan facility from a Chinese bank, African Export Import Bank (Afrexim), a lifeline poised to significantly improve water delivery and sewer reticulation system, Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda has said.

The loan facility was guaranteed by MDC secretary-general and Finance Minister, Hon. Tendai Biti. It is one of the biggest financial lifeline that the city council has received from a foreign bank in a decade. “The US$150 million will be channelled to the rehabilitation of water and sewer treatment works," Mayor Masunda said. "We are essentially putting everything up to speed at Morton Jaffray, Firle, Prince Edward and Crowborough. “The funds will help us finish all current upgrades.

The loan will go a long way towards getting everything up to speed,” said Mayor Masunda. The loan will go a long way in improving water delivery and the
sewer reticulation system that had been seriously affected by the unnecessary interference by Zanu PF’s Ignatius Chombo.

He said once the water problem was solved, the next challenge would be power generation. Mayor Masunda said the Harare City Council had asked for the return of the Harare Thermal Power Station from the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa) to quash the prevailing problems, which have resulted in water installations being cut off due to insufficient power supplies. “We don’t want to be cry babies and we don’t want to be always blaming others for our failures,” he said. Mayor Masunda said the other advantage for the Harare residents and businesses was that they would have one composite bill.

“I want Harare residents to come to a one-stop-shop,” he said. Last year the capital city embarked on a water pipe replacement project after receiving US$17 million from the Ministry of Finance.