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Shurugwi, originally known as Selukwe, is a district located in Midlands Province, southern Zimbabwe. 98,315 people live in Shurugwi rural and 23,304 live in Shurugwi town (2022 census). [1]
It is an important centre for gold, platinum and chrome mining, but it is perhaps best known as the home district of the former Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Douglas Smith who owned a farm near Gwenoro Dam. Its principal town is also called Shurugwi. It is located about 30 kilometres from the Midlands Provincial capital Gweru. Shurugwi District encompasses much of the rural areas of Nhema and some parts of Chivi. The district has seen a resurgence of mining activities after the discovery of platinum at Unki which lies a few kilometres just after the Wolfshall Pass (Boterekwa). This has seen the establishment of a large mining complex by Implats (Impala Platinum) and the refurbishing of houses which used to belong to the old Zimasco employees.
Shurugwi district is predominantly occupied by the Karanga ethnic people who form the majority of the population but there are other minorities like Ndebele speaking people in the Rockford small scale purchase farms and the Dlodlo area. Other ethnic people are the few remaining ex-employees of Zimasco who are predominantly of Malawian extraction.
The region is dominated by the Great Dyke which dissects it in the middle. Much of the other areas are made up of poor sandy soils which support subsistence agriculture. Tokwe river, locally known as Tugwi runs in the middle of Rockford Farmlands making the area potentially viable for agricultural projects in addition to mineral wealth.
Politically Shurugwi district saw a lot of fighting between Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army fighters and Rhodesian forces which led to significant deaths among the civilian population (1976–79). It has remained a predominantly ZANU-PF stronghold since independence.
Town Council
Shurugwi District is run by two local government arms, one for the rural district and the other for the urban district.
For the rural district see Tongogara RDC
Shurugwi Town Council created in terms of the Zimbabwe Urban Councils Act, Chapter 29.15 [2] administers 13 urban wards of Shurugwi North Constituency.
2013 - 2018 Council
Electoral Commission [3]
| Ward | Councillor | Gender | Party |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Mukokanduku Janet | F | ZANU-PF |
| 02 | Nyamatendedza obert | M | MDC-T |
| 03 | Mukorovi Zvidzai | M | MDC-T |
| 04 | Mavhenyegwa Samue Obriel | M | MDC-T |
| 05 | Mapwanya Davias | M | ZANU-PF |
| 06 | Kasama Jackson | M | MDC-T |
| 07 | Machiya Fanuel | M | MDC-T |
| 08 | Makore Tsungai | M | ZANU-PF |
| 09 | Mahachi Yudit Tsungirirai | F | ZANU-PF |
| 10 | Mudzimu Maggie | F | ZANU-PF |
| 11 | Gara Brighton | M | ZANU-PF |
| 12 | Hapazari Paradzai | M | ZANU-PF |
| 13 | Pedzisai Wonder | M | ZANU-PF |
2008 - 2013 Council
Source: Kubatana Aechive [4]
| Ward | Councillor | Gender | Party |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Mukokanduku Janet | f | Zanu-PF |
| 02 | Nyamatendedza Obert | m | MDCZ |
| 03 | Mukorovi Zvidzai | m | MDCZ |
| 04 | Madziture Bulle | m | MDCZ |
| 05 | Mashoko Onisimo | m | MDCZ |
| 06 | Mbizo Regiment | m | MDCZ |
| 07 | Zamuchiya Reketayi | - | MDCZ |
| 08 | Chauke Gibson | m | MDCZ |
| 09 | Mahachi Tsungurirai Yudit | - | Zanu-PF |
| 10 | Mudzimu Maggie | f | Zanu-PF |
| 11 | Takavarasha Jericco | m | MDCZ |
| 12 | Madzivire Lucia | m | MDCZ |
| 13 | Venantio Phiri | m | MDCZ |
Shurugwi has not escaped the scourge of the AIDS pandemic with many of its youthful people succumbing to the deadly virus.
Shurugwi boasts several higher education institutions like Hanke Seventh Day Adventist Mission, Tongogara High School and Pakame Mission which date back many years. It has a significant number of highly educated professionals like lawyers, doctors, accountants, engineers and others. Rockford farmlands were created by the Rhodesian Government in 1934 and became home to some Black elite luminaries of that time the most notable being one of the early Christian faith Black Pastors Philemon Dzimiri (1898-1978).
Midlands is a province of Zimbabwe. It has an area of 49,166 square kilometres (18,983 sq mi) and a population of 1,811,905 (2022). It is home to various peoples. Located at a central point in the country, it contains speakers of Shona, Ndebele, Tswana, Sotho and Chewa, as well as of various other languages. Gweru, the third-largest city in Zimbabwe, is the capital of the province.
Shurugwi, originally known as Selukwe, is a small town and administrative centre in Midlands Province, southern Zimbabwe, located about 350 km south of Harare, with a population of 22,900 according to the 2022 census. The town was established in 1899 on the Selukwe Goldfield, which itself was discovered in the early 1890s not long after the annexation of Rhodesia by the Pioneer Column.
Marira is a village on the outskirts of Shurugwi in the Midlands Province of Zimbabwe. It is roughly 25 km southeast of Shurugwi, southeast from the A18.
Tongogara High School is a government-run high school in the rural areas of Chief Nhema in Shurugwi, Zimbabwe which offers classes up to A-level.
Shurugwi Rural Areas, also known as Shurugwi District, is a rural area around Shurugwi, Zimbabwe, mainly to the east, beginning 20 kilometres from the town centre. The area between the town and the rural areas was mainly occupied by white commercial farmers. It is thought that at one time, these farms were owned by three families who were all related. The total area of these farms is approximately 60 km x 40 km similar to an area that was occupied by more than 4,000 African families. Most of the black families are subsistence farmers. Maize is generally grown by the majority.
Mutorashanga is a small ferrochrome mining town in Mashonaland West province in Zimbabwe. Situated on Zimbabwe's Great Dyke mountain range, about 100 kilometers north of the capital, Harare. The mines at Mutorashanga are largely owned by Zimasco, a chrome mining company owned in turn by Sinosteel Corporation, although some are operated by contractors. The area is well known for its abundant aloes, now threatened by mining, and other endemic flora. Aloe Ortholopha is endemic to the section of the Great Dyke mountain range in the Mutorashanga area.
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Tongogara Rural District Council is a local government organ administering Shurugwi District Rural District. There are two local government arms, Shurugwi Town Council created under the Zimbabwe Urban Councils Act, Chapter 29.15 administering Shurugwi, and Tongogara RDC created in terms of the Zimbabwe Rural District Councils Act, Chapter 29.13 overseeing the rural Shurugwi South District
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