Government says it is in the process of privatising the provision of public services, including clean potable water, after realising the failure by councils to fulfill their mandates.
Addressing journalists in Harare Monday during a 'Media Meets Cabinet Ministers' interface, Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe said modalities were already underway to regularise the privatisation process.
"Last week Friday, we were given the green light to privatise water services. We are now in the process of inviting private sector players, both local and international, to bring proposals, expressions of interest. These are going to be unsolicited bids.
"We want somebody with the capacity to engineer, to procure, to construct and manage the finance. That's the model that we are working on. Engineering, procurement, construction, management and finance.
"These are unsolicited bids. So, as we speak, we've already received about five expressions of interest from local players and three from international players. So, it's work in progress," Garwe said.
He was hoping that by the end of next week, his ministry would have identified and interviewed all interested players.
"By end of next week, we would have identified the most suitable people that have applied and appointed them, at least signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), and then a Memorandum of Agreement.
"We want by the end of this month to have dealt with the issue of water in Harare," added Garwe.
He said a lot of purified water was being lost through leakages.
"By the time it reaches a resident, it's just a fraction of what has been purified. We are looking at an investor who comes and covers the whole value chain, from purification to distribution to billing and metering.
"We want to move away from the old metre system to digital metre systems, the smart water metering systems. That's what we are doing," he stated.
Garwe promised that by the end of this month or early February, there will be movement in this regard not in Harare alone but in all urban councils countrywide.
"We are looking at all our cities. We have started, but the invitations are not focused on Harare, they are focused on all the urban cities.
"Priority areas are Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls."
Besides the privatisation of water services, government will also privatise all other services such as solid and liquid waste management systems to make sure cases of burst pipes are dealt with once and for all.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
Chitungwiza and most of Harare's suburbs have gone for years with raw sewage flowing in residential areas.
Garwe urged journalists to wait for the Commission of Inquiry to complete its investigations on Harare City regarding some allegations.
"Let the Commission do its work and then we can find a way forward," said Garwe.
The minister also explained that the privatisation of public services in urban councils was not coming at a premium to residents.
"Technology is cheaper. Many people think it is expensive to privatise services," cautioned Garwe.
