President Mnangagwa is today expected to officially open Tariro Clinic and Youth Centre in Hopley, Harare, which were visited by opposition leader Nelson Chamisa yesterday.
The facility was built through a skills development project supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNPF), the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Harare City Health Department and Larfarge Cement.
A total of 100 young people were part of the skills development project.
They were trained in areas such as plumbing, building and cobblestone technology.
The youths were engaged as apprentices to build the facility and a road connecting the clinic to the main road.
Over half of the youths were young women who also received reproductive health education.
City health director Dr Prosper Chonzi said the clinic is expected to provide comprehensive health care to residents of Hopley and surrounding areas.
“We want to make this clinic our prototype and it is the biggest satellite clinic in the City and we want to make it a replica to other areas such that people will get full services.
“There were no maternity services in the area and most people would go to Hutsanana in Glen Norah and Highfield Maternity Clinic for delivery,” he said.
Dr Chonzi said they are working on increasing the scope of services to be provided at the clinic.
The clinic is fully solar-powered, has a functional borehole and a solar-powered water supply back up.
The Youth Centre, which will also be officially opened tomorrow, is expected to provide entertainment for hundreds of youths in the area.
It will also have a library and Internet services.
On Tuesday, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) announced Mnangagwa will Thursday officially open Tariro Clinic at Hopley as part of celebrations to mark World Population Day.
Chamisa chided Mnangagwa for accepting the invitation to officiate at a council clinic. The Harare City Council is run by the opposition.
“Why should Mnangagwa come to open a local authority institution, in fact this is an effort of the council. But if he is coming, he is welcome because he must also come and see evidence of good leadership at local level,” Chamisa told journalists after the visit.
Chamisa added that he was shocked Mnangagwa was recognising success at local authorities run by the opposition but does not see failures by central government he is in charge of.
The opposition leader cited the rot at parastatals like the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA), Zesa and the roads that he described as “death traps.”
“That’s the problem. Success has many parents and failure seems to be orphaned, there is failure at ZESA, ZINWA, there is failure in the roads which are now death traps but we are not seeing him there. Then there is now this child from our local authorities, he wants to come here. He should address problems faced in government,” said Chamisa.