By Municipal Reporter– The Harare City Council has announced a citywide water shutdown that will last the entire weekend.
Acting Town Clerk Engineer Phakamile Mabhena Moyo said the shutdown—set to run from 6 PM Friday, 20 June 2025, to 6 PM Sunday, 22 June 2025—is necessitated by a major pipe burst at the Warren Control water distribution centre.
The interruption will allow engineers to assess, scour, and repair the damaged mainline as well as two other burst pipes within the network.
The shutdown will affect vast parts of the capital, including Tynwald, Southerton, Eastlea, Hillside, Braeside, Milton Park, and Parirenyatwa Hospital, along with parts of the Central Business District (CBD).
However, some western high-density suburbs such as Glen View, Budiriro, Kuwadzana, and Mufakose are expected to remain unaffected during the repair period.
Mabhena Moyo has urged residents to use water sparingly and prepare adequately for the disruption.
This latest disruption is yet another chapter in Harare’s long-running water crisis, which has been characterised by frequent shortages, burst water pipes, and contaminated tap water.
Despite receiving billions of dollars in loans and grants over the years, Harare’s water infrastructure remains in a state of decay, crippled by years of underinvestment and deep-rooted corruption.
Successive councils have failed to implement lasting solutions.
Tender processes for water treatment chemicals, pipe replacements, and infrastructure upgrades have long been marred by corruption, with lucrative contracts often awarded to politically connected individuals and companies aligned to Zanu PF-affiliated cabals.
In many cases, contractors fail to deliver, or supply substandard materials, while funds meant for upgrades vanish without trace.
Even when water does come out of household taps, residents frequently complain that it is dirty, smelly, and unsafe to drink, forcing many to rely on unsafe open wells, boreholes, or expensive bottled water.
In high-density suburbs, waterborne diseases such as typhoid and cholera remain a threat due to poor sanitation and unreliable municipal water supplies.
The City of Harare’s repeated failure to guarantee clean and reliable water has sparked growing public outrage.
Civil society groups and residents’ associations have consistently called for an audit of the city’s procurement processes and the prosecution of officials involved in the plunder of water funds.
However, no significant action has been taken, and the city continues to limp from one water crisis to the next.