by Derick Tsimba

The country’s major road network dualisation is progressing well as Government works hard to ensure that the country’s roads meet international standards.

 On its Twitter handle, the Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry said Government continued to work on the dualisation of Harare-Mutare and Harare-Bulawayo highways.

“Government continues to dualise the Harare-Mutare and the Harare-Bulawayo highways. Works on the Harare-Mutare road have now passed Melfort and are inching closer to Marondera.

“The dualisation of the Harare-Mutare road would facilitate the free movement of commercial vehicles ferrying essential commodities such as fuel and grain from the Mozambican port of Beira,” said the Ministry.

Government continues to upgrade the country’s road network to enable economic development that will subsequently enable the attainment of the upper middle income economy status by 2030.

Work on Beitbridge-Masvingo highway is also on an advanced stage with the Government increasing contractors from five to nine. The four additional contractors are expected to speed up the Beitbridge-Masvingo road dualisation and rehabilitation.

Government had previously contracted five companies namely Bitumen World, Masimba Construction, Fossil Contractors, Tensor Systems and Exodus Company to rehabilitate the highway which had become the country’s most dangerous road. Modernisation of the Beitbridge-Masvingo highway promotes regional trade and the movement of millions of people within Southern, Central and Africa at large.

By contracting four more companies on the ground, work is expected to be expedited to meet the 2023 deadline. This year alone by April, close to 180 kilometres of the highway should be completed.

The country’s roads will soon be having a new face after the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development has since planned to commence the construction of a traffic interchange at Mbudzi roundabout to ease congestion.