Bulawayo councillors have welcomed a Transparency International Zimbabwe (TIZ) initiative aimed at strengthening engagement between residents and elected representatives, saying it could improve access to information and promote accountable local governance.
The 12-month project, Citizen Engagement for Responsive and Accountable Governance (CERAG) in Zimbabwe, will be implemented in Bulawayo and Harare. It seeks to strengthen accountability and improve relations between local authorities and the communities they serve.
The initiative includes community hubs, an accountability tracker, corruption risk assessments, work involving the Auditor-General and an Accountability Index.
Speaking at an inception meeting on Friday, councillors said the project could provide a platform for constructive dialogue, address information gaps and help residents understand council operations and their role in improving service delivery.
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Ward 26 councillor Mpumelelo Moyo said the initiative would also highlight areas where the local authority was performing well, arguing that discussions about council performance often focused on shortcomings.
“I’m happy for this platform. I’ve also been crying for such a platform which amplifies where we are doing good as council,” Moyo said.
He cited refuse collection as an example, saying council collected waste weekly in residential suburbs, yet some residents continued to dump rubbish at undesignated sites, increasing the local authority’s operational costs.
Moyo said residents also had a responsibility to maintain a clean environment, protect council infrastructure and pay their bills to support service delivery.
Ward 18 councillor Felix Madzana said strained relations between councillors and residents’ groups remained a challenge, with engagement often characterised by accusations rather than efforts to find solutions.
He likened residents to referees waiting for councillors to make mistakes instead of working alongside them to address community concerns.
Madzana cited debates over the Glass Block Dam project and the Geo Pomona waste management arrangements as examples of issues that had fuelled criticism of councillors.
“The other thing is that we as councillors we are elected for a term of five years and there are some projects which you can actually find already on the pipeline and you inherit them because there is this continuity just like any other government. But whenever people might know about Glassblock today but they don’t even know it is a project which started as early as maybe 1980s. But when we then start talking about now the assumption is that is something new. And these councillors, this crop of councillors there is something that they are trying to do. I don’t even know where the mistrust is coming from but as you try maybe to engage it’s one of the challenges that you should also try and tackle,” he said.
He urged residents’ groups to engage councillors with research and practical proposals, allowing both sides to discuss concerns and consider alternatives.
“We want a relationship where people can come together,” Madzana said.
He acknowledged that councillors did not have all the answers and could make genuine mistakes, saying constructive engagement could help identify and address problems.
Madzana also said residents needed to understand that some projects inherited by the current council had been in the pipeline for years, making historical context important when scrutinising local authority decisions.
Ward 17 councillor Sikhululekile Moyo identified the information gap between residents and councillors as another obstacle to effective engagement.
She said sharing information was often difficult because residents sometimes questioned the information they received from council.
“I think the missing link between councillors and residents is the information gap. Residents have the information that they want to hear and the information that they don’t even want to hear,” she said.
“When you give them too much information, they feel like you are telling them what they were not meant to hear. It’s like they want limited information, it’s so hard.”
Moyo welcomed the initiative but urged TIZ to involve civil society organisations working with residents in the accountability tracking process. She said this would help ensure that engagement remained focused on accountability rather than political interests.
Ward 7 councillor Thandiwe Moyo said some residents also needed a clearer understanding of the responsibilities of elected representatives.
She said councillors were sometimes expected to attend community events, including funerals, even when doing so could distract them from their official duties.
“Residents don’t know the roles and responsibilities of a councillor. They expect us to be seen in all funerals, but now you are abandoning the role they sent you to do,” she said.
Ward 3 councillor Mxolisi Mahlangu said transparency required commitment from both elected representatives and the residents holding them accountable.
He urged residents to seek information, scrutinise council decisions and propose alternatives rather than limiting their engagement to criticism.
Mahlangu cited opposition to Bulawayo City Council’s proposed 2027 budget, which includes a 74% rates increase, as an example of the need for more constructive engagement.
He argued that residents should distinguish between a proposed budget and an approved one, using consultations to suggest alternatives and seek a compromise.
“The most recent example, there is a budget that is being disputed by residents. 74 percent increase which is obtained five years after a standstill budget in my view,” Mahlangu said.
“I have not seen a resident, not even one who says this is a proposed budget. Let’s propose this one and then engage and maybe find a middle ground.”
He also pointed to the council’s publication of its half-year performance report, which outlined how funds had been spent. He said residents needed to make greater use of available information when questioning council expenditure.
TIZ executive director Tafadzwa Chikumbu said the project was driven by a shared desire to improve the city and strengthen accountability.
“One thing that I have realised is that everyone wants a better city, everyone wants a better Bulawayo and it is my hope that once we bridge that gap we will also realise the significance of residents associations,” Chikumbu said.
He said accountability required a careful balance between those demanding answers and those expected to account for their decisions.
Chikumbu added that the project would provide an opportunity to assess its progress and identify lessons from areas where it fell short of its objectives. He said stakeholders should view any shortcomings as opportunities to learn and improve rather than reasons to abandon the initiative.
The project comes amid ongoing debates over local authority service delivery, public expenditure and relations between residents and elected representatives.
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