Urban Governance Outreach Program: Material Edited from a Conference on Urban Governance and Management Programme in Zimbabwe

Abstract

Presented in the next sections are papers on the proceedings of a workshop, which successfully managed to highlight current, future issues and challenges concerning urban governance in Zimbabwe. Urban Development, Growth and Governance Issues: Historically, urban local governments in Zimbabwe tended to have wide ranging capacity to provide a broad range of services to their populations. Delivery of these services and maintenance of the related infrastructure was efficient. This was mainly because of the relatively slow rate of urbanization. Urban settlement growth was kept under check through rigorous and tight development control and control of rural-urban migration. The changes brought about by national independence created unprecedented service, delivery and management and governance challenges. Virtually all-Zimbabwean urban settlements are growing and expanding at an unprecedented rate which raises serious questions of sustainability, environment, infrastructure, poverty and governance. Indeed, the current rates qf growth will, by the year 2016, see 50% of Zimbabwe's 11 million people residing in urban areas. \ \ x . The principal factors behind this rapid urban growth are rural to urban migration and natural population increases, in this regard, the presentation by Mr K P Murapa and Mr J Mabhenge develops scenarios and detailed accounts of the rural-urban linkages and their importance in urban policy formulation and management. While urban local authorities are battling to cope with the increasing demand for urban services, the problem is that of poverty in that the majority of the people who need the services cannot afford to pay for them.