SUMMARY
8 contractors. 57.2km completed. One year later.
The rehabilitation of the 440.4km Bulawayo–Victoria Falls Highway began in July 2025.
On Wednesday, Transport Minister Felix Mhona told Parliament that eight contractors were deployed, with each responsible for about 50km of the highway.
Thursday, Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube, in the 2026 Mid-Term Budget Review, announced that only 57.2km of the highway has so far been opened to traffic.
The Bulawayo–Victoria Falls Road is Zimbabwe’s key tourism and regional trade corridor.
THE STORY
Lupane East MP Siphathisiwe Machangu (ZANU PF) has raised concerns in Parliament over the apparent slowdown in rehabilitation works on the Bulawayo–Victoria Falls Highway, saying there was little visible activity along large sections of the road.
During Question Time in the National Assembly on Wednesday, Machangu asked whether it was Government policy to allow road contractors to abandon rehabilitation projects before completion, leaving roads in a deteriorating condition.
In a follow-up question, she said motorists travelling along the highway were no longer seeing construction activity.
“The road that I am referring to is the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Road. Nothing is happening on that road now. You travel from Bulawayo to Lupane and there is not a single construction vehicle. You proceed from Lupane to Jotsholo and there is not a single construction vehicle there. Further towards Hwange, there is complete abandonment.”
Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona responded that Government did not permit contractors to abandon projects, but acknowledged that some road projects had stalled due to funding constraints.
“We do agree that we have several stalled projects and we have identified such projects in each province. Since we now have an infrastructure framework in place that has been agreed between the Minister of Transport and Minister of Finance to pay our contractors, I am sure such a contractor will also be one of those that will be paid.”
Addressing the Bulawayo–Victoria Falls Highway specifically, Mhona said the 440-kilometre project had been divided among eight contractors, each responsible for about 50 kilometres, after Government decided to prioritise rehabilitation of the road while pursuing a larger Public-Private Partnership arrangement covering the Beitbridge–Bulawayo–Victoria Falls corridor.
He said some construction work was taking place away from the main carriageway because traffic had been diverted onto detours.
“For a number of those, two and a half weeks ago, we recently opened about 9 km. People who are using those roads can vouch for that.”
Mhona said limited funding had contributed to the slowdown, telling Parliament that the allocation for road works nationwide was insufficient to meet the scale of infrastructure rehabilitation required.
He said Government had since secured funding to resume work.
“I am happy that this is one of the roads that we have earmarked and now we have funding to continue the works… Watch the space and as we move towards August, you will see massive rehabilitation again. Those contractors will be mobilised again to their various sections… I do concur that the project was stalled and you will see an accelerated pace going forward.”
The parliamentary exchange comes about a year after rehabilitation of the 440.4-kilometre Bulawayo–Victoria Falls Highway began in July 2025.
In his 2026 Mid-Term Budget Review presented on Thursday, Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said 57.2 kilometres of the highway had been completed by the eight contractors working on the project.
The project had initially been expected to be completed by December 2026, but the latest figures indicate that significant work remains outstanding.