Government Hails Muroodzi River Rehabilitation Pilot

By Itai Mazire

A high-level government delegation, led by Deputy Chief Secretary in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Engineer Amos Marawa, has praised the progress made on the pilot project of the Presidential River Rehabilitation Program at Muroodzi River in Mazowe.

The delegation, which included secretaries from various government departments, expressed satisfaction with the ongoing de-siltation and restoration efforts being carried out by Prevail Group of Companies, owned by Special Advisor to the President, Dr. Paul Tungwarara.

Engineer Marawa said the initiative is set to be rolled out nationwide.

“All provinces are working to identify degraded river sites so we can quantify the amount of rehabilitation work required,” he said.

“To kick-start this process, the government approved a pilot project, which was implemented at Muroodzi River in Mazowe.”

The project, which began last year, initially focused on a five-kilometre stretch of the river.

“We developed a rehabilitation plan in consultation with Prevail International, the company appointed for the work,” Eng. Marawa explained.

“They have already restored about three kilometres, starting with the most degraded section of the five-kilometre stretch. We are here to assess the quality of their work, and we are pleased with the progress in de-siltation and river restoration.”

Prevail International Project Manager, Simbarashe Makonese, outlined the challenges and solutions implemented.

“This site was heavily mined, with excessive silt in the river, unstable banks, and eroded riverside slopes. Our work has involved removing silt, stabilising degraded slopes, installing soil erosion control sheets, and rehabilitating the riverbanks,” he said.

Mrs. Tendai Sithole, Chief Executive Officer of Prevail International, highlighted the project’s achievements.

“We intentionally started with a five-kilometre stretch of Muroodzi River, and to date, three kilometres have been restored. Our work has restored irrigation, agricultural activities, and access to clean and safe water for communities along the river,” she said.

The Presidential River Rehabilitation Program is a key government initiative aimed at reversing extensive environmental damage caused by years of illegal and uncontrolled riverbed mining.

Such activities led to severe siltation, disrupted water flow, and negatively affected irrigation, agricultural productivity, and access to clean water for communities.

The government has banned riverbed mining through Cabinet resolutions, reinforced by Statutory Instrument 88 of 2024.

The Muroodzi River project serves as a prototype, demonstrating practical and sustainable methods for restoring degraded rivers and improving water flow. Once the model proves successful, plans are in place for a national rollout across all provinces.