Parliamentarians have called for urgent action to improve living conditions at Bulawayo’s Burombo Flats after describing the decades-old housing complex as a symbol of Zimbabwe’s unfinished colonial legacy, where overcrowding, poor sanitation and a lack of basic services continue to undermine residents’ dignity.
Members of Parliament serving on the Portfolio Committee on Local Government, Public Works and National Housing made the remarks during an oversight visit to the flats, near Nguboyenja, where they assessed government housing, sanitation and urban renewal programmes.
The legislators said families should be relocated to safer and more humane accommodation while authorities pursue long-term redevelopment of the ageing complex.
Built around 1954, Burombo Flats were among Bulawayo’s earliest workers’ hostels, constructed primarily to house male labourers employed in the city’s industries during the colonial era.
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Binga South MP Fanuel Cumanzala said the conditions at the flats reflected more than a housing crisis.
“The condition of the flats is not just a housing issue, but a matter of historical justice and human dignity. For many people, Burombo Flats are just old buildings, but for the people of the Zambezi Valley, especially the Tonga community, they represent a painful chapter of our history,” he said.
Cumanzala said many of the original occupants were Tonga men recruited as cheap labour from Binga and other parts of the Zambezi Valley under the colonial administration.
“Many of the original residents were Tonga men recruited as cheap labour from Binga and other parts of the Zambezi Valley to work in Bulawayo’s industries under the colonial system. They lived in overcrowded hostels with little dignity, separated from their families and treated as temporary labour rather than full citizens.”
He said it was troubling that more than four decades after independence, many Zimbabweans were still living in infrastructure designed to serve discriminatory colonial policies.
“Independence was meant to restore dignity to Zimbabweans. It is difficult to explain why thousands of our people are still living in infrastructure designed during colonial rule to accommodate labourers under discriminatory policies. We cannot continue to preserve this legacy through neglect.”
Cumanzala called for a comprehensive structural assessment of the buildings, rehabilitation of water, sewer and electricity infrastructure, decongestion through the construction of modern affordable family housing, and a joint government and Bulawayo City Council urban renewal programme supported by public-private partnerships.
Residents told the committee that overcrowding, power cuts and deteriorating living conditions had become part of daily life.
Burombo Residents Chairperson Joyce Makhalima said families were forced to share single-room apartments, leaving parents and children without privacy.
“We are appealing to the government to find a solution to improve our living conditions. As you can see, we are living in one-room apartments. We share these spaces as families, parents and children. We cannot even speak of privacy; we engage in adult activities while the children are there. This is culminating in cases of early pregnancy among our children because they are prematurely exposed to things that are not befitting of their age,” she said.
Makhalima said the flats had been without electricity for three years after power was disconnected following the electrocution of a child.
“We have not had electricity for the past three years after a child was electrocuted and the power got disconnected. Since then we are relying on gas as an energy source which is not entirely safe considering the size of our apartments. Lack of electricity has also led to a spike in cases of crime as criminals take advantage of the darkness.”
Bulawayo City Council Assistant Director for Housing and Community Services Zakeu Sibanda said the local authority had carried out some rehabilitation work but lacked the resources needed to fully upgrade the complex.
“We have done some bit of work in terms of rehabilitating sewer and water pipes and the toilets, but the major challenge we face is funding. There is a substantive amount of money that is needed to complete the work,” Sibanda said.
He said the council was encouraging residents with the financial means to relocate to serviced residential stands as part of efforts to reduce overcrowding.
“In terms of decongesting, we are trying to move those with financial means from the flats to areas where there are serviced residential stands so that they can settle there. The flats have a capacity of accommodating 159 families, but lately we have over 1 000 people living there.”
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