Harare City Council (HCC) has handed over the Pomona dumpsite to a German investor, Geogenix BV, to transform the dumpsite into a waste management project under a deal that has courted controversy.
The deal has attracted litigation over possible irregularities
on how it was awarded and structured. There is a pending case at the High
Court, where Harare North legislator Norman Markham is challenging the awarding
of project, which will see the city pay Geogenix US$316 million.
Several allegations have been raised on the project,
implicating Local Government minister July Moyo for allegedly railroading the
council into hurriedly approving the deal before the March 26 by-elections,
which saw the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change councillors becoming the
majority.
Moyo allegedly feared that their presence could jeopardise
the project.
“It is in the public interest that we jointly issue this
statement, primarily to update the general public, but also to avert any
misinformation on the developments at the Pomona dumpsite,” HCC and Geo Pomona
Waste Management said in a joint statement.
“The City of Harare concluded a Build, own, operate and
transfer (BOOT) joint venture agreement with Geogenix BB with a contractual
lifespan of 30 years.
“This project will transform the Pomona dumpsite into a
modern urban waste management facility for the City of Harare and its
residents, elevating the city’s urban waste disposal capabilities to modern
standards. The benefits of such a milestone, if allowed and supported by all
stakeholders, are extensive.”
They claimed that the project was necessary in addressing
all concerns raised by stakeholders and adopting best practices and modern
technology consistent with world standards.
HCC said all private parties active in waste collection
were at liberty to engage Geo Pomona Waste Management (Pvt) Limited on the
modalities of how their relationship could progress going forward.
The key components of the BOOT agreement are encapsulation
of the existing landfill, internal infrastructure works (utilities, roads,
drainage), construction of a new landfill, construction of a wastewater
treatment plant, construction of a biogas plant, construction of a recycling
plant, construction of a waste-to-energy plant, construction of a recreation
area within the landfill and management of the entire waste treatment. Newsday
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