Gwanda
Coordinates: 20 ° 56 ′ S , 29 ° 1 ′ E
Gwanda , also Jawunda or Jahunda, founded in 1900, is the capital of the Matabeleland South Province in Zimbabwe and a district there. Jahunda is a mountain near the city that today bears a very densely populated suburb of the same name.
Geography, traffic
The city is 965 m high and is 196 km from the only Zimbabwean-South African border crossing in Beitbridge . The A6 trunk road and railway line through Gwanda lead to Bulawayo and Beitbridge. With the opening of a new border crossing in June 2016, the Mlambapeli Border Post , there is a cheaper road connection to Botswana from the city than was previously possible via the Plumtree Border Post .
population
The highest population density in the province of Matabeleland South is in the rural district of Gwanda Rural (Census 2012, 115.778 Ew.). The Gwanda district, i.e. the city and its surroundings, has a population of 20,227 people according to the 2012 census.
The Gwanda region has the second highest rate of HIV / AIDS infection in Zimbabwe. As a result, there are a large number of orphans and children at risk here.
Municipal infrastructure
The problematic water supply for the urban population, which had persisted for a long time, led to protests and political controversy in 2016. The main demand was that the state water supplier ZIMWA should withdraw from the municipal water management, because the dual responsibility parallel to the municipal authorities had led to persistently unsatisfactory conditions.
Economy and education
There are mines in the outskirts of the city that extract gold , asbestos and chrome . They belong to the Great Dyke Zone, which is rich in mineral resources . Small-scale and unregulated gold mining leads to considerable environmental problems in the region of Gwanda, which are expressed in high levels of suspended matter ( silt ) in surface waters, soil erosion and in mercury contamination of the environment through gold mining technology.
Otherwise, agriculture dominates in this semi-arid area, especially cattle breeding. There are a few lodges for tourism.
The Gwanda State University (GSU) , which opened in 2013, is located in the city . It is temporarily housed in a former mining complex ( Epoch Mine ). It consists of two faculties:
- Faculty of Engineering (engineering),
- Faculty of Agriculture .
The establishment of a Faculty of Industrial Management (business administration) is planned.
The city of Gwanda has elementary and secondary schools and a college. The Edward Ndlovu Library has stood there since 1992, and has been expanded since then and supplies local schools with books.
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Caledonia Mining Corporation plc: Blanket Gold Mine . at www.caledoniamining.com (English).
- ↑ Sukulwenkosi Dube: New Zimbabwe-Botswana border post opens . News from The Chronicle dated June 2, 2016 on www.chronicle.co.zw (English).
- ↑ ZimStat , Central Census Office: Census 2012 Provincial Report Matabeleland South ( Memento of 18 April 2017 Internet Archive ). at www.zimstat.co.zw (English), PDF document pp. 20–21.
- ^ Forgotten Voices: Brethren in Christ Church Gwanda. Gwanda, Zimbabwe “Inkosi Inhle Orphan Care” ( Memento from April 18, 2017 in the Internet Archive ). at www.forgottenvoices.org (English).
- ↑ Bekezela Maduma Fuzwayo: ZINWA and Water crisis in Gwanda . News from April 11, 2017 on www.bulawayo24.com (English).
- ^ René Arthur Pelletier: Mineral Resources of South-Central Africa . Oxford University Press, Cape Town / London / New York / Toronto 1964, pp. 144, 153, 158.
- ↑ Dumile Bhebhe: Environmental damage caused by gold panning in Gwanda district (Zimbabwe) . Master's thesis at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein , online at www.ufs.ac.za (English).
- ^ Marvelous Moyo: Gwanda State varsity launched . News from The Chronicle from July 2, 2013 on www.chronicle.co.zw .
- ^ Gwanda State University: About GSU . at www.gsu.ac.zw (English).