Masvingo Fort Victoria | |
---|---|
City | |
Motto: Our Heritage Our Guide | |
Coordinates: 20°03′45″S30°49′25″E / 20.06250°S 30.82361°E | |
City | Zimbabwe |
Province | Masvingo |
District | Masvingo |
Fort Victoria | 1890 |
Masvingo | 1982 |
Government | |
• Executive Mayor | Femius Chakabuda |
• Executive Mayor | Collin Maboke |
Area | |
• Urban | 71.88 km2 (27.75 sq mi) |
Elevation | 1,075 m (3,527 ft) |
Population (2022 census) [1] | |
• Urban | 90,286 |
• Urban density | 1,300/km2 (3,300/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+2 (CAT) |
Area code | 039 |
Climate | Cwa |
Website | http://masvingocity.gov.zw/ |
Masvingo, known as Fort Victoria during the colonial period, is a city in southeastern Zimbabwe and the capital of Masvingo Province. The city lies close to Great Zimbabwe, the national monument from which the country takes its name [2] and close to Lake Mutirikwi, its recreational park, the Kyle dam and the Kyle National Reserve that is home to a range of animal species. It is mostly populated by the Karanga people who form the biggest branch of the various Shona tribes in Zimbabwe.
The city was known as Fort Victoria until 1982, when its name was briefly changed to Nyanda, after a mountain about 10 kilometres south of the town, on the Masvingo to Beitbridge Road. That led to protests, because "nyanda" means "one who has lice", and public sentiment was that Masvingo would be more reflective of the history of the city. Within a few months, the name was changed to Masvingo, which means "fort" in Shona, and the Great Zimbabwe, which is essentially a walled fort, is often referred to as "Masvingo eZimbabwe" or sometimes "Masvingo eVitori", a translation of the original name.
Masvingo is the oldest colonial settlement in Zimbabwe which developed around an encampment established in 1890, when the British South Africa Company "Pioneer Column" of the first European colonists passed through on their way to what became Salisbury, now Harare. The Old Fort national monument is located in the center of town, and was erected in 1891 as one of a series of fortifications to guard the route from Salisbury to the south. The very first cricket match in Zimbabwe is said to have taken place close by, in 1890. [3]
The population was approximately 15,000 in 1970; [4] 30,523 in 1982 and rose to 51,743 in 1992. It had a population of approximately 58,000 in 2002. Masvingo is located 292 kilometres (181 miles) south of Harare. Most of the local population belongs to the Karanga and Manyika, Shona sub-tribes. The city is divided into suburbs including Mucheke, Rujeko, Rhodene, Target Kopje and Eastvale. The suburbs are divided into high-density, middle-density and low-density suburbs. Mucheke, the oldest township and Rujeko are the most populous high-density suburbs. Mucheke is also the site of the city's main bus rank as well as the stadium which is named after the ghetto. KMP and Runyararo suburbs are relatively new high and medium density suburbs beyond Mucheke. The middle-density suburbs are Eastvale located close to Zimuto Police Camp and Target Kopje located on the southern part of town on a small hill close to Flamboyant Hotel. Rhodene, a low-density suburb on the northern part of the city centre, is the most affluent suburb in Masvingo. A new suburban development, Zimre Park, is also taking shape to the north east of the town along Bulawayo Road. Another suburban development is taking place close to the affluent Clipsham Park and is aptly named Clipsham Heights as it straddles the hills running parallel to the Beitbridge-Masvingo road. Masvingo also has peri-urban plots such as Morningside, Glenlivet, and Bushmead.[ citation needed ]
Masvingo Polytechnic, Great Zimbabwe University, Bondolfi Teachers College, Morgenster Teachers College and Masvingo Teachers College are the main centres of higher education in the city. The three institutes are run by the government, while Bondolfi and Morgenster are privately owned. Great Zimbabwe University grew out of what was once Masvingo State University. Reformed Church University (RCU) is another university 25 km (16 mi) south of Masvingo run by the Reformed Church of Zimbabwe. It was formerly the Great Zimbabwe University. Masvingo Teachers' College is one of the government run colleges from which Great Zimbabwe devolved. The college has still remained at the campus and the university has a new site. Other teachers' colleges around Masvingo include the Reformed Church of Zimbabwe run Morgenster Teachers' College and the Catholic run Bondolfi Teachers' College. High schools in the city include Victoria High School, located just north of the city centre. Kyle College, Masvingo Christian High School, Ndarama High School and Mucheke High School. There are also privately run high schools commonly referred to as colleges around the city. Pamushana High School, Zimuto High school, Gokomere High School are some of the highly esteemed mission boarding schools in Masvingo Province and are all located few kilometres outside town.[ citation needed ]
The landscape in southern Zimbabwe is relatively flat, interspersed with rounded granite mountains. Known as kopjes (Dutch: little heads), they are often quite smooth. Msasa trees dominate the savannah landscape, with the occasional baobab tree. The weather is hot and dry throughout the year, except during the summer when the rains come. There is a range of small hills to the south of the city centre. Mucheke and Shagashe rivers run close to the centre and both of them act as de facto boundaries of the central business district. Robert Mugabe way, one of the city's main streets, is lined with pine trees adjacent to some of the oldest buildings in Zimbabwe such as The victoria hotel and the building opposite to it that now houses The High Court of Zimbabwe. The tallest building is the 9-storey Zimre center located in the CBD. The Bell Tower is a historical building and formed part of the fort erected by the British South African Company in 1892 to protect settlers around Fort Victoria.
The town lies near Lake Mutirikwi and is home to a nine-hole golf course and a freight railway line. It lies on the Mucheke River, with a civic centre at the town centre. Shagashe Game Park and an Italian memorial church built during World War II are nearby. Masvingo also has an airstrip. The national airline, Air Zimbabwe, has reintroduced a domestic flight connecting Masvingo to Harare in the north and Buffalo Range in the south starting on 5 December 2014.
Masvingo is situated in a drought-prone area, with average rainfall of 600 mm/a. [5] The raw water source for the city is Lake Mutirikwi. Apart from providing water for the city, Lake Mutirikwi supports water supply schemes for several riparian farmers and large sugar cane irrigation schemes in the Triangle, Zimbabwe and Hippo Valley areas. The storage capacity of the lake, which was completed in 1960, is 1,378 million cubic metres (48.7 billion cubic feet).
Climate data for Masvingo (1961–1990, extremes 1951–present) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 38.9 (102.0) | 39.0 (102.2) | 37.2 (99.0) | 35.1 (95.2) | 34.0 (93.2) | 31.3 (88.3) | 31.2 (88.2) | 34.9 (94.8) | 38.5 (101.3) | 39.5 (103.1) | 39.0 (102.2) | 39.2 (102.6) | 39.5 (103.1) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 28.1 (82.6) | 27.4 (81.3) | 26.9 (80.4) | 25.9 (78.6) | 24.1 (75.4) | 21.5 (70.7) | 21.6 (70.9) | 24.4 (75.9) | 27.4 (81.3) | 29.2 (84.6) | 28.7 (83.7) | 28.0 (82.4) | 26.1 (79.0) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 22.9 (73.2) | 22.2 (72.0) | 21.4 (70.5) | 19.4 (66.9) | 16.4 (61.5) | 13.9 (57.0) | 13.6 (56.5) | 16.2 (61.2) | 19.6 (67.3) | 21.8 (71.2) | 22.9 (73.2) | 22.7 (72.9) | 19.4 (66.9) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 17.2 (63.0) | 16.9 (62.4) | 15.4 (59.7) | 12.7 (54.9) | 8.7 (47.7) | 5.8 (42.4) | 5.4 (41.7) | 7.7 (45.9) | 11.4 (52.5) | 14.8 (58.6) | 16.1 (61.0) | 17.1 (62.8) | 12.4 (54.3) |
Record low °C (°F) | 9.7 (49.5) | 10.0 (50.0) | 8.1 (46.6) | 2.4 (36.3) | 0.0 (32.0) | −4.6 (23.7) | −3.6 (25.5) | −0.3 (31.5) | 2.5 (36.5) | 3.2 (37.8) | 6.3 (43.3) | 8.3 (46.9) | −4.6 (23.7) |
Average rainfall mm (inches) | 128.7 (5.07) | 107.2 (4.22) | 65.6 (2.58) | 27.9 (1.10) | 12.8 (0.50) | 5.7 (0.22) | 2.7 (0.11) | 6.4 (0.25) | 10.4 (0.41) | 29.6 (1.17) | 77.2 (3.04) | 140.2 (5.52) | 614.4 (24.19) |
Average rainy days | 10 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 54 |
Average relative humidity (%) | 70 | 74 | 71 | 73 | 67 | 65 | 61 | 53 | 47 | 54 | 66 | 71 | 64 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 248.0 | 207.2 | 244.9 | 243.0 | 266.6 | 249.0 | 263.5 | 285.2 | 279.0 | 260.4 | 228.0 | 217.0 | 2,991.8 |
Mean daily sunshine hours | 8.0 | 7.4 | 7.9 | 8.1 | 8.6 | 8.3 | 8.5 | 9.2 | 9.3 | 8.4 | 7.6 | 7.0 | 8.2 |
Source 1: World Meteorological Organization, [6] NOAA (sun and mean temperature, 1961–1990), [7] | |||||||||||||
Source 2: Deutscher Wetterdienst (humidity, 1968–1974), [8] Meteo Climat (record highs and lows) [9] |
The town used to have large cattle ranches, but the country's Land Reform Programme is sometimes blamed for decimating that industry. Small scale farmers now make up the majority of suppliers of agricultural produce. Masvingo is mainly a residential city. The informal sector also dominates industry in town.
There are a variety of tourist attractions within a thirty-mile (48-kilometre) radius of the town. Within 20 kilometres (12 miles) of Masvingo are the Great Zimbabwe National Monument, old ruins where the country derives its name and the Lake Mutirikwi Recreational Park and Kyle game resort with 12 different species, including the white rhino.
Masvingo is known in the country for producing film and theatre productions that compete with those from Harare and Bulawayo. The city's film and theatre hub is located at the Charles Austin Theatre found at the city's Civic Centre gardens. It was run by the Masvingo Drama Circle from 1971 until its decline in 2015. [10] Young artists took over the running of the facility under the name Masvingo Theatre and Arts Clubs and that resulted in film and theatre productions that have put Masvingo on the map in the arts industry. One notable play that came from Masvingo was a stage play by playwright Charles Munganasa titled Operation Restore Regasi which made international headlines and told the story of Robert Mugabe's fall from power. [11] [12] In 2017, a short film titled Seiko directed by Sydney Taivavashe won the outstanding short film production at the National Arts Merit Awards, Zimbabwe's top entertainment award ceremony making it the first film award to be won by a Masvingo artist. [13] [14] Sabhuku Vharazipi is a comedian from Masvingo who rose to fame in 2013 with his famous drama comedy titled Sabhuku Vharazipi which won the hearts of many locals. He is known for his signature rural folk dressing, a shiny bald head as well as an unmistakable Karanga tone which distinguishes his productions from the others. [15]
The major soccer club in the town is Masvingo United, whose home ground is Mucheke Stadium in the suburb of Mucheke. There are many amateur social football clubs in the city and they usually play their games at the various grounds around the city. Annually, a Miss Masvingo Province pageant is held. The city is host to the Charles Austin Theatre located at the civic center, a venue synonymous to many theatre enthusiasts in the country. The film and television industry is growing in the city with the up-and-coming generation at the forefront of the development.
The Southern Rocks, one of the five first-class cricket teams in Zimbabwe until its disbandment after the 2013–14 season, played its home games at the Masvingo Sports Club.
Africa Talent Publishers is a publishing company based in Masvingo. The company was started in 2018 by two Great Zimbabwe University lecturers, Munyaradzi Mawere and Tapuwa Rubaya, to promote indigenous stories and encourage the growth of a reading culture. It is the first such establishment to be founded in Masvingo. [16]
Masvingo is twinned with:
The twinning was signed by the town mayors in 1990. [17] This led to the forming of the Kernen-Masvingo association by Kernens Mayor Mr. Haussmann, the school headmaster Franz Miller and its board manager D. Kaiser for 7 years. This organisation has led many projects in Masvingo, including school partnerships, such as that between Karl-Mauch-Schule in Kernen and Bondolfi primary school (25 km), building of a dining room at the old peoples' home in Mucheke, the Runyararo-Frieden day clinic and the construction of 4 buildings at Alpha cottages orphanage. Many other projects have been realised: cholera medicine, water treatment chemicals, many containers with helping goods, introduction of the medicine Viramune/Nevirapin in 2001 to all hospitals in Zimbabwe by D. Kaiser, given free of charge by the German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim. [18]
Harare, formerly 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.
Great Zimbabwe is a medieval city in the south-eastern hills of the modern country of Zimbabwe, near Lake Mutirikwe and the town of Masvingo. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Zimbabwe from the 13th century, having been settled in the 4th century AD. Construction on the city began in the 11th century and continued until it was abandoned in the 15th century. The edifices were erected by ancestors of the Shona people, currently located in Zimbabwe and nearby countries. The stone city spans an area of 7.22 square kilometres (2.79 sq mi) and could have housed up to 18,000 people at its peak, giving it a population density of approximately 2,500 inhabitants per square kilometre (6,500/sq mi). It is recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Masvingo, previously named Victoria, is a province in southeastern Zimbabwe. It has a population of 1.638 million as of the 2022 census, ranking fifth out of Zimbabwe's ten provinces. Established by the British South Africa Company, it was one of the five original provinces of Southern Rhodesia. In 1982, two years after Zimbabwean independence, it was renamed Masvingo Province. The province is divided into seven districts, including Masvingo District, which contains the provincial capital Masvingo City.
Mutare, formerly known as Umtali until 1982, is the capital and largest city in the province of Manicaland. It is the third most populated in Zimbabwe. Having surpassed Gweru in the 2012 census, with an urban population of 224,802 and approximately 260,567 in the surrounding districts, Mutare adds to the wider metropolitan area a total population of over 500,000 people. Mutare is also the capital of Manicaland Province and the largest city in eastern Zimbabwe.
Gweru, originally known as Gwelo, is a city in central Zimbabwe. It is on the centre of Midlands Province. Originally an area known to the Ndebele as "The Steep Place" because of the Gweru River's high banks, in 1894 it became the site of a military outpost established by Leander Starr Jameson. In 1914 it attained municipal status, and in 1971 it became a city.
Eddison Jonasi Mudadirwa Zvobgo was a Zimbabwean politician and the founder of Zimbabwe's ruling party, ZANU–PF. He was the ZANU-PF's spokesman at the Lancaster House in late 1979, a Harvard-educated lawyer, a war veteran, a freedom fighter, a poet, a national hero, and a hotelier.
The government of Zimbabwe is the main provider of air, rail and road services; historically, there has been little participation of private investors in transport infrastructure.
Highfield is the second oldest high-density suburb or township in Harare, Zimbabwe built to house Rhodesians of African origin, the first being Mbare. Highfield was founded on what used to be Highfields Farm. It is of historical, cultural and political significance to Zimbabwe and is known as Fiyo in local slang. It is one of the birthplaces of the Zimbabwe African National Union and is home to several prominent people in the country such as Gregy Vambe and Oliver Mtukudzi, and formerly Robert Mugabe.
Marondera, originally known as Marandellas, is a city in Mashonaland East, Zimbabwe, located about 72 kilometres (45 mi) east of Harare.
Beitbridge is a border town in the province of Matabeleland South, Zimbabwe. The name also refers to the border post and bridge spanning the Limpopo River, which forms the political border between South Africa and Zimbabwe. The border on the South African side of the river is also named Beitbridge.
Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa is a Zimbabwean politician who is serving as the third president of Zimbabwe since 2017. A member of ZANU–PF and a longtime ally of former President Robert Mugabe, he held a series of cabinet portfolios and he was Mugabe's first-vice president from 2014 until 2017, when he was dismissed before coming to power in a coup d'état. He secured his first full term as president in the disputed 2018 general election. Mnangagwa was re-elected in the August 2023 general election with 52.6% of the vote.
Articles related to Zimbabwe include:
Chivi, originally known as Chibi, is a district in the Masvingo Province of Zimbabwe. The area was originally established as a mission station in 1894 by the Berlin Missionary Society under the name Chibi Mission.
Mberengwa, originally known as Belingwe, is a district in Midlands province in Zimbabwe. The district is now divided into sub-districts: Mberengwa North, East, West and South. It is bounded by Gwanda in Mberengwa west, and by Zvishavane in its northern zone, to the south it stretches to Neshuro, Chikombedzi and bounded by Manyuchi dam.
Paul Tangi Mhova Mkondo was a Zimbabwean nationalist, he was part of the first group of Gonakudzingwa restriction camp political prisoners, he is also a Pioneer Insurance Executive, Business magnate, Academic, philanthropist, conservationist, pioneer Indigenous businessman and entrepreneur.
The Reformed Church in Zimbabwe was founded by Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa missionaries on the 9th of September 1891. Andrew A. Louw begun to preach in the area near Morgenster among Shona people. The worship language of churches was Afrikaans and English. Later the denomination expanded among Nyanja people. In 1999 a new mission field was opened in Binga District. The young Church was administered from South Africa under the Dutch Reformed Church Cape Synod, eventually, the African Reformed Church in Rhodesia came into being, as an indigenous and independent church, under the control of church councils, four presbyteries and a synod. In 1977 it became the fully autonomous African Reformed Church. Soon after the country's independence in 1980, the name was changed to Reformed Church in Zimbabwe. Some historic church structures are still referred to as Dutch Reformed Churches and some Reformed Church members still use that name. The R.C.Z subscribes to the Heidelberg Catechism, Belgic Confession, and the Canons of Dort as its doctrinal standard. The R.C.Z is a member of the World Council of Churches, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches. In addition to its various church activities, the church has a special concern for its schools namely Henry Murray School for the deaf in Morgenster, and the Margaretha Hugo School (Copota) for the blind in Zimuto. The RCZ is also the responsible authority for a number of primary and secondary schools, a teacher-training college, Murray Theological College and the Reformed Church University (RCU) in Masvingo, as well as two hospitals and several clinics.
Peter William Hewlett is a Zimbabwean farmer and politician who served as a member of Parliament in the House of Assembly from 1990 to 2000. A member of ZANU–PF, he represented the Zhombe and Kwekwe North constituencies.
Francina Susanna Louw née Malan, known as Cinie Louw was a South African missionary and linguist working in South Rhodesia. The linguist Clement Martyn Doke praised her Manual of the Chirakanga Language (1915) as "the best grammatical sketch of any Mashonaland language hitherto published".