PRESIDENT MNANGAGWA REVOLUTIONALISES PUBLIC TRANSPORT SYSTEM; ZUPCO BUYS 750 NEW BUSES IN 3 YEARS, CREATES 6500 JOBS
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By Taonga Botolo
President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa has taken his quest to rebuild Zimbabwe to a whole new level.
When he was taking over power in 2017, Zimbabwe’s public transport sector was in tatters.
The main cities were in total chaos and cases of abuse of women and children by taxi operators were rampant.
The Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (Zupco), a state owned parastatal, had only a fleet of around 50 old buses.
Fast forward 2021, the Mnangagwa led administration has done the unimaginable. The public transport system has been overhauled. The state is in-charge.
The take over of the transport system by the state has brought stability as far as fares are concerned. Previously, the taxi operators took advantage of high demand of commuters by overcharging especially during peak hours.
President Mnangagwa intervened by allotting funds to Zupco to buy new fleet of buses.
The target is to buy 1500 new buses by end of next year. So far, President Mnangagwa’s administration has bought about 750 brand new buses and are already proving a game changer in all the 10 provinces.
The revamping of Zupco has seen the creation of nearly 6500 jobs, this is a big leap for a country that has been on economic meltdown for over 20 years.
President Mnangagwa said recently during commissioning of new fleet of buses that the ongoing modernisation of the economy and increase in productivity, requires a robust and efficient public transport system.
As part of revolutionalising the transport system, Mnangagwa government also re-introduced passenger trains in Harare and Bulawayo cities.
The train services were halted two decades ago due to the collapse of the railway services.
Despite Zimbabwe facing punitive sanctions from western governments, President Mnangagwa has surprised many by rejuvenating the economy which is expected to grow by 8% this year.
Under President Mnangagwa, Zimbabwe government has raked US$8billion in the mining sector alone, this has helped to contribute to the growth of the economy.
A change in policy in the agriculture sector has also seen Zimbabwe registering bumper yield of about three million tonnes of grain for the first time in 25 years.
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