The Community Water Alliance (CWA) is demanding the termination of a concession agreement between the City of Harare and Geogenix for a waste-to-energy power plant. The CWA argues that the deal is harmful to residents and provides no benefits.

Wilson Waison

CWA National Coordinator, Hardlife Mudzingwa, criticizes the project's lack of progress: “Serve for a football pitch that has not been a deliverable of the concession agreement, no municipal waste processing plant and waste to energy plant has been constructed at the site."

Mudzingwa further highlights the financial concerns of the deal saying "We are concerned that the City continues to ignore residents' calls for total termination of the Pomona dumpsite deal…the city or government continues to pay Geogenix despite failure to meet even contractual deliverables."

The City of Harare maintains support of the deal despite the CWA's demands, Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume confirms that the city has found "common ground" with Geogenix.

“The deal with Geogenix still stands and council will cooperate in efforts to get rid of waste and improve hygiene of the city through refuse collection,” he said.

The Mayor also highlighted challenges facing Harare's water sanitation infrastructure and urged residents to practice good hygiene.

He also highlighted challenges facing Harare's water sanitation infrastructure, including the unavailability of new dams built since 1976 difficulties modernizing the Morton Jaffray water plant, water supply demands from neighbouring Chitungwiza and imported water treatment chemicals billed in foreign currency.

The Harare City Council has repeatedly clashed with the Central Government over the waste-to-energy deal in the past, arguing it was approved illegally and offers no benefits to residents. The Council maintained that Geogenix should pay them for waste delivery instead, yet the Central Government continued to pay the company despite the Council's objections.