THE Zimbabwe Electricity Development Company (ZETDC), part of power utility ZESA) has agreed to pay US$15,000 as compensation to a Manicaland based 13-year-old minor who sustained injuries after being electrocuted by exposed electricity cables.

The development was a result of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) intervention after the minor child was left nursing extensive injuries in April 2019.

"Medical doctors estimated his impairment percentage at 20%.

"The minor's parents were assisted by ZLHR, who on 16 September 2022, wrote a letter of demand to ZETDC for a payment amounting to US$15 000 as compensation for damages suffered by the 13-year-old child.

"ZETDC through its insurers, Cell Insurance, recently advised Kabaya that it had accepted the minor child's claim and would pay him US$15 000 as compensation for the damages which he suffered from the electrocution," ZLHR said.

The payment will be made through Cell Insurance.

The power utility has a sustained record of electrocution of minors owing to weak supervision and deteriorating craftsmanship.

Last year the utility made headlines after three learners from Kweneng Primary School in Mangwe, Matabeleland South, were electrocuted by collapsed electricity cables in an incident that villagers blame on rising negligence.

The cables are said to have been down since 2020 following the collapse of supporting poles and villagers say numerous reports made to ZESA about the matter have not yielded any fruit to date.

In 2018, the authority was slapped with a US$23 805 compensation order to a Harare widow, Scholastica Muranda who lost her husband due to electrocution after stepping on live cables unexpectedly.