Chitungwiza | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Coat of arms | |
| Nickname: Chi Town | |
| Motto: Pamberi nekushandira pamwe | |
  Chitungwiza | |
| Coordinates: 17°59′38″S31°02′53″E / 17.99389°S 31.04806°E | |
| Country | Zimbabwe |
| Province | Harare Province |
| Area | |
| • Total | 49.02 km2 (18.93 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 1,448 m (4,751 ft) |
| Population (2022 census) [1] | |
| • Total | 371,244 |
| • Density | 7,600/km2 (20,000/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (CAT) |
| Climate | Cwb |
| Website | www |
Chitungwiza is an urban centre and town of Harare Province in Zimbabwe.
As of the 2022 census, Chitungwiza had a population of 371,244. [1]
There are two main highways which connect the city to Harare [2] namely Seke road and Chitungwiza road.
The Chitungwiza Aquatic Complex, built in 1995 for the All Africa Games, is no longer functional, and serves as a music and church venue. [3]
Following the civil war, people moved to urban areas. Chitungwiza grew rapidly and the squatted area of Chirambahuyo alone had a population of 30,000 in 1979. [4] Chirambahuyo was demolished by the authorities in 1982 and the inhabitants squatted elsewhere in the city in areas such as Mayambara. [5]
Areas in Chitungwiza were destroyed by Operation Murambatsvina in 2005. [6] By the mid-2010s, the number of people squatting in informal settlements was growing. [7] In 2020, the local authorities abandoned their plans to demolish squatter homes in Nyatsime, Seke, St Mary’s and Zengeza, after a court order was requested. [8]
The musician Maskiri comes from Chitungwiza. [9]
The Town Clerk in 2016 was Dr George Makunde, who complained that a reduction in his wage from $10,000 per month to $4,500 per month had put him in difficulties. [10] In 2019 and 2020, Dr. Tonderai Kasu served as the Acting Town Clerk and Shine Simarungu was the District Vaccine Stores Officer. [11] Emmanuel Makandiwa and Alick Macheso are from Chitungwiza.
Current Mayor: Lovemore Maiko [12]
Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there were one billion slum residents and squatters globally. Squatting occurs worldwide and tends to occur when people find empty buildings or land to occupy for housing. It has a long history, broken down by country below.
Harare, formerly known as Salisbury, is the capital and largest city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of 982.3 km2 (379.3 sq mi), a population of 1,849,600 as of the 2022 census and an estimated 2,487,209 people in its metropolitan province. The city is situated in north-eastern Zimbabwe in the country's Mashonaland region. Harare is a metropolitan province, which also incorporates the municipalities of Chitungwiza and Epworth. The city sits on a plateau at an elevation of 1,483 metres above sea level, and its climate falls into the subtropical highland category.
Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council claimed it to be about 1.2 million. Bulawayo covers an area of 546 square kilometres in the western part of the country, along the Matsheumhlope River. Along with the capital Harare, Bulawayo is one of two cities in Zimbabwe that are also provinces.
Mabvuku is a suburb east of Harare, the capital city of Zimbabwe.
Operation Murambatsvina, also officially known as Operation Restore Order, was a large-scale Zimbabwean government campaign to forcibly clear slum areas across the country. The campaign started in 2005 and according to United Nations estimates has affected at least 700,000 people directly through loss of their homes or livelihood and thus could have indirectly affected around 2.4 million people. Robert Mugabe and other government officials characterised the operation as a crackdown against illegal housing and commercial activities, and as an effort to reduce the risk of the spread of infectious disease in these areas.
Mbare, originally known as Harari, is a suburb in the south of Harare, Zimbabwe. Founded in 1907 as a township, it includes an informal settlement. Mbare Musika is the largest farm produce market in Zimbabwe.
Waterfalls is a residential suburb in the southern region of Harare, Zimbabwe and falls under Harare Ward 23 District. Waterfalls neighbourhoods include Ardbennie, Cheviot, Derbyshire, Grobbie Park, Houghton Park, Induna Park, Mainway Meadows, Malvern, Midlands, Parktown, Prospect, Shortstone and Uplands. The name Waterfalls is a reference to the falls that lead into Mukuvisi River. There are squatted informal settlements around Waterfalls. As of 2013, the biggest squatter zone in Harare was Hopley, next to Waterfalls.
Epworth is a dormitory town in south-eastern Harare Province, Zimbabwe. Its population exploded in the late 1970s and 1980s as an informal settlement.
Dzivarasekwa is a suburb of western Harare, Zimbabwe.
A Junior City Council is a local form of government, governed by minors.
Harare Metropolitan Province is a province in northeastern Zimbabwe that comprises Harare, the country's capital and largest city, and three other municipalities, Chitungwiza, Epworth and Ruwa. At independence in 1980, it was originally part of Mashonaland Province which in 1983 was divided into three large provinces, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, and Mashonaland West - at this point, the city of Harare became part of Mashonaland East. In 1997, along with Bulawayo, it became a metropolitan province, along with the then two nearby urban settlements. Harare Metropolitan Province is divided into four local government areas - a city council, a municipality and two local boards.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Harare, Zimbabwe.
Tonderai Kasu is a community leader in Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe. A medical doctor by training, he is the substantive Director of Health and Environmental Services for Chitungwiza, and has been the Acting Town Clerk or Acting Chief Executive, of the Chitungwiza Town Council.
Squatting in Serbia refers to the unauthorised occupation of land or buildings. Following World War I, shanty towns emerged in the mostly demolished capital Belgrade, the most notable example being Jatagan Mala. The population of Belgrade rose from 593,000 in 1953 to 1,470,000 in 1981. Between 1961 and 1971, 52% of all private construction of houses in Belgrade was illegal. The percentage was also high in other cities such as Novi Sad and Smederevo. The reasons for squatting and illegal construction were the lack of affordable housing, bad governance and the bureaucracy involved in legalising land clams. Also the punishments were light.
Squatting in Zimbabwe is the settlement of land or buildings without the permission of the owner. Squatting began under colonialism. After Zimbabwe was created in 1980, peasant farmers and squatters disputed the distribution of land. Informal settlements have developed on the periphery of cities such as Chitungwiza and the capital Harare. In 2005, Operation Murambatsvina evicted an estimated 700,000 people.
Squatting in Ghana is the occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner. Informal settlements are found in cities such as Kumasi and the capital Accra. Ashaiman, now a town of 100,000 people, was swelled by squatters. In central Accra, next to Agbogbloshie, the Old Fadama settlement houses an estimated 80,000 people and is subject to a controversial discussion about eviction. The residents have been supported by Amnesty International, the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions and Shack Dwellers International.
Squatting in Brazil is the occupation of unused or derelict buildings or land without the permission of the owner. After attempting to eradicate slums in the 1960s and 1970s, local governments transitioned to a policy of toleration. Cities such as Recife, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo have large informal settlements known as favelas. A more recent phenomenon is the occupation of buildings in city centres by organised groups. In rural areas across the country, the Landless Workers' Movement (MST) arranges large land occupations.
Urban areas in the Philippines such as Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao have large informal settlements. The Philippine Statistics Authority defines a squatter, or alternatively "informal dwellers", as "One who settles on the land of another without title or right or without the owner's consent whether in urban or rural areas". Squatting is criminalized by the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992, also known as the Lina Law. There have been various attempts to regularize squatter settlements, such as the Zonal Improvement Program and the Community Mortgage Program. In 2018, the Philippine Statistics Authority estimated that out of the country's population of about 106 million, 4.5 million were homeless.
Squatting in Liberia is one of three ways to access land, the other two being ownership by deed or customary ownership. The informal settlement West Point was founded in the capital Monrovia in the 1950s and is estimated to house between 29,500 and 75,000 people. During the First Liberian Civil War 1989–1997 and the Second Liberian Civil War 1999–2003, many people in Liberia were displaced and some ended up squatting in Monrovia. The Ducor Hotel fell into disrepair and was squatted, before being evicted in 2007. In the early 2020s, over 9,000 Burkinabés were squatting on remote land and the Liberia Land Authority (LLA) announced a plan to title all land in the country.
Squatting in Taiwan is the occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner. Squatting was fuelled by migrants from China from the 1950s onwards and in addition cities such as the capital Taipei were swelled by internal migrants from the countryside. In order to create Daan Forest Park, 12,000 squatters were evicted. The informal settlement at Treasure Hill has been recognized as cultural heritage.
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