Sunday Mail Correspondent
THE proposed Epworth Master Plan by the Local Board promises to elevate the area into a resilient, self-sustaining and prosperous city by 2030.
The proposals are envisaged to address decades of haphazard development and infrastructural deficits while aligning Epworth with national, continental and global development agendas like Vision 2030, Agenda 2063 and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
The plan targets to enhance the administrative capacity and upgrade of Epworth Local Board’s urban administration status.
Epworth currently has a population of over 206 000, which is projected to balloon to over 325 000 by 2042 — a growth rate (2,3 percent per year) faster than the entire Harare Metropolitan region.
Upgrading the administrative status will equip the local authority with the necessary resources, legislative muscle and financial autonomy to manage the rapidly growing urban population.
It is believed that the master plan’s central objective is to contain and address the structural challenge of informality.
The current land use is predominantly residential, neglecting the balanced mix required for a self-sustaining town.
“This imbalance is compounded by high- and medium-density residential areas relying on inadequate on-site sewage disposal, posing severe public health risks,” said an official from the local authority, who elected to remain anonymous.
“Furthermore, unapproved housing built on wetlands and along streams like the Jacha River faces constant flooding danger. Proposing a move towards a balanced mix of land uses is vital for economic diversification and local job creation, reducing Epworth’s dependency on Harare.”
The suggestion for a transparent and affordable regularisation and upgrading model is understood to be key to improving security of tenure for residents and bringing vast currently informal areas into the formal planning and tax base.
Further, developing a comprehensive wastewater management plan and a bulk water supply infrastructure directly addresses the public health crisis and ensures safe water for a community that will require 45 megalitres of water per day by 2042.
A recent study revealed that social amenities as such as schools are over-subscribed, health facilities are strained (with a newly commissioned clinic yet to be operational), while law and order facilities are stretched by high crime rates.
Sites designated for 15 schools and a proposed mega-sporting facility have been illegally occupied.
Epworth is critically under-serviced in terms of connectivity, relying mainly on two major roads — Chiremba and Delport — with some areas being inaccessible to public transport due to poor road conditions.
However, the proposed plan targets to embrace the organic growth of the Chiremba Road Corridor into a vibrant mixed-use development area and to unlock the economic potential presented by the proximity to the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport for an export industry.
Rehabilitating and maintaining major roads is envisaged to improve public transport accessibility and drive commerce.
In addition, the master plan emphasises the need to preserve Epworth’s unrecorded history, including the proposal for an Epworth Museum.
It also proposes to unlock the tourism potential of the Chiremba balancing rocks.
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