By Tinaani Nyabereka
Gweru Residents and Ratepayers Association (GRRA) has issued a report of the city’s budget participation process outlining a number a challenges that needed to be addressed in the 2025 budget consultations.
In a position paper which was issued by Gweru Residents and Ratepayers recently, residents commended improvement on service delivery across various sectors but expressed concern on a number of gaps in citizen engagement.
“Some residents are still dissatisfied with services such as health, education, and the environmental cleanliness and hygiene of their respective areas.
“The City Of Gweru has made strides in enhancing budget consultations, with an increased willingness to invite stakeholders to performance reviews and pre-budget meetings.
“This shows GCC’s desire and willingness to promote inclusive participation, peace, and good governance,” the paper read.
GRRA went on to call the local authority to provide essential information, documents and a budget strategy for the 2025 budget with residents.
“We therefore call for Gweru Council to provide essential documents such as tariffs, income and expenditure reports, and a budget strategy paper for the 2025 draft budget,” read part of the paper.
GRRA also urged the GCC to enhance its communication strategy by advertising budget consultations two weeks in advance across all platforms, both online and offline, to improve participation.
