Gwanda housing project stalls for over a decade

Frustration is mounting among beneficiaries of the Judds Farm housing project in Gwanda, where hundreds of home seekers say they have waited more than 10 years for access to stands they fully paid for but cannot yet occupy.

The development, initiated in 2015 by Harare-based Forit Contracting (Pvt) Limited, has faced repeated delays, stalled infrastructure works, and unresolved administrative disputes involving the developer and Gwanda Municipality.

Beneficiaries say they paid between US$3 000 and US$11 000 for residential stands across different density zones, but have yet to receive serviced land or permission to build.

Some residents say they have now lost patience and are considering occupying the land informally by putting up makeshift shelters to force recognition of their claims.

"We have exhausted every avenue, but nothing has helped," one beneficiary said, adding that repeated appeals to council officials, the developer, and provincial authorities have yielded no resolution.

According to affected residents, the initial arrangement allowed buyers to pay a US$1 000 deposit and begin construction while settling the balance in instalments. However, Forit later suspended instalment payments, citing the need to first complete water and sewer infrastructure.

The situation has been further complicated by concerns over possible mining claims on the land and fears of overlapping allocations, raising uncertainty about the project's legal and administrative status.

In December last year, Gwanda Municipality reportedly renewed Forit's development contract after a period of inactivity, with conditions requiring the servicing of hundreds of stands within a set timeframe under council supervision.

The developer subsequently proposed servicing over 300 stands within four months and more than 1 700 within a year, but beneficiaries say little visible work has begun on the ground.

Forit director Itai Madziyire has maintained that council committed to expediting the renewal process and that earlier moves to terminate the contract were reversed due to procedural issues.

Despite approved layouts and signed agreements facilitated through Masawi and Partners, beneficiaries say they remain without clarity on when development will resume.

Residents say they now want concrete action rather than further assurances, arguing that the prolonged delays have left them financially and emotionally strained after more than a decade of waiting.