Mnangagwa claims that Zimbabwe is on cusp of construction boom

Zimbabwe has embarked on a major construction drive that is now evident in the housing boom the country is experiencing in residential and non-residential infrastructure, both in rural and urban spaces, President Mnangagwa has said.

The construction boom, which is being spearheaded by both the public and private sectors, has already delivered 145 000 housing units across the country.

The Government plans to provide at least 220 000 housing units by 2025 under National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1). The authorities are also investing heavily in the construction of highways, dams, irrigation facilities, schools, colleges, clinics and hospitals.

In this week's instalment of his column in The Sunday Mail, President Mnangagwa said the country's economic growth had spurred heightened construction activity.

"Zimbabwe is on the cusp of a construction boom. Construction writ large, including in infrastructures, residential and non-residential structures, both for public and private sectors, and both in urban and rural spaces," he said.

"Even factories - which the economic downturn had reduced to a tumble-down, derelict state - are now undergoing renovation or getting replaced by entirely new, modern structures which are second to none."

He commended Zimbabweans for saving and investing in building houses. "Even more pronounced has been private constructions, especially residential. Zimbabweans, including those in the diaspora, have been building homes of all sizes: from start-ups to family homes and even mansions.

"This trend reflects in the rural sector, at growth points especially, where modern, upmarket structures are changing the rural landscape."

This, he said, underlines the fact that the rural-urban nexus is now reciprocal and mutually reinforcing.

Construction in non-residential spaces is also picking up as evidenced by shopping malls, supermarkets, wholesalers, roadside mini-markets and eateries that are now dominant in every part of towns and cities across the country.

"All that suggests expanded activity in the economy, for which construction becomes some derived demand. Developments in the retail sector have been quite exciting, in line with greater manufacturing activity in the economy," he said.

Proliferation of hardware and tiles manufacturing companies and outlets, including international ones, he added, is an indicator of the buoyancy of the construction sector.

President Mnangagwa also spoke about the increased demand for specialised services in the sector.

"Thankfully, our tertiary institutions now have the capacity to deliver these specialised skills to the construction industry, thus taking it to a higher level.

"I am also happy that more such skills are repatriating themselves back home after years of invaluable exposure in more advanced jurisdictions."

Construction, the President also said, enjoys larger multipliers that must be harnessed to benefit the economy.

He outlined several interventions that need to be done to achieve this, including the need to keep inflation in check, absorb new technologies, tame informal settlements, provide basic amenities, densification of settlements and provide social amenities for rural settlements.

He also emphasised the need to insure rural homes against risks and provide mortgages suitable for all.