BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI
The Victoria Falls City Council is proposing a US$20 million budget for next year as it tries to keep up with rising inflation.
Speaking on the sidelines of a recent budget consultation meeting, council’s finance director Neville Ndlovu said the proposed budget was a US$2 million increase from the combined 2022 budget and the supplementary budget that was adopted later in the year.
“For 2022, including the supplementary budget we were on US$18 965 149, and for the next year we are proposing US$20 083 932,” Ndlovu said.
The council’s finance boss had earlier told stakeholders that the 2023 tariff increase was mainly driven by the worsening economic situation, characterised by rising inflation.
“Inflation rose from 66, 18 percent in February to 257 percent in July,” Ndlovu said.
“Fuel prices continue to rise and electricity (tariffs) went up by 342 percent while the official exchange rate moved from $85 to $621 yet the parallel market exchange rate has moved from $120 to $750 (to the US dollar).”
He said although the government had eased travel restrictions imposed during Covid-19 lockdowns, the war between Russia and Ukraine continued to affect the city’s biggest economy, which is tourism.
If the proposed budget is approved by central government, 1 000 litres of water will cost US$1.07 cents from US$ 83 cents for the least paying ratepayers from high density suburbs.
Cemetery fees will be pegged at US$250 from $175 while expecting mothers will be paying 50 percent more for delivering at the council-run clinics.
Commercial license fees will go up by between 50 percent and over 170 percent.
Helicopter helipad owners will pay US$1719 up from US$ 860 and operators said the fees were beyond their reach considering that the tourism industry was yet to recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, residents pleaded with the local authority to revise the budget downwards arguing that the proposed tariffs did not match the level of service delivery in the city.
Most suburbs in the city do not have constant water supplies and suffer from frequent sewer pipe bursts.
Ndlovu said council had managed to work on the storm drains in three areas and embarked on road rehabilitation programmes utilising its capital budget.
Council also bought a motorised grader, he said.
He, however, bemoaned shortage of manpower and support staff to efficiently execute duties.
“We have a huge backlog on valve maintenance, both small and commercial, and we also lack service equipment for dewatering and jack hammers,” Ndlovu said.