{"id":722,"date":"2025-07-14T06:45:08","date_gmt":"2025-07-14T06:45:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/?p=722"},"modified":"2025-07-14T06:45:08","modified_gmt":"2025-07-14T06:45:08","slug":"viset-engages-mutare-stakeholders-in-public-finance-and-health-accountability-dialogue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/2025\/07\/14\/viset-engages-mutare-stakeholders-in-public-finance-and-health-accountability-dialogue\/","title":{"rendered":"VISET Engages Mutare Stakeholders in Public Finance and Health Accountability Dialogue"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Fanuel Chinowaita<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Jabulani Chikomwe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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MUTARE , 13 July 2025<\/em><\/strong> – The Vendors Initiative for Social and Economic Transformation (VISET) last week held a two-day Public Finance Management (PFM) training in Mutare, bringing together city officials, councillors, informal traders and residents to promote transparency, inclusive budgeting, and accountability in health service delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The workshop, held on 8\u20139 July 2025, was part of VISET\u2019s expanded Local Accountability and Citizen Engagement (LACE) project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Facilitated by the Labour and Economic Development Research Institute of Zimbabwe (LEDRIZ), the program introduced participatory governance concepts, focusing on the inclusion of informal traders in shaping local government budgets and legislation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

VISET Manicaland Coordinator David Mutambirwa said the PFM teach-in was a strategic initiative to build the capacity of both citizens and duty bearers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis training is not just about sharing knowledge,\u201d said Mutambirwa. \u201cIt is about empowering informal traders, residents and councillors to actively participate in policy processes, especially the ongoing by-law reform and budgeting frameworks within the City of Mutare.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the first day, VISET engaged with City of Mutare officials, elected councillors and representatives from the Ministry of Youth and SMEs. The second day focused on informal traders, civil society organizations, media, and residents\u2019 associations. The program explored key issues such as health budgeting, taxation, expenditure tracking, and community engagement in public finance oversight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking during the workshop, VISET Official Jabulani Chikomwe emphasized that the organisation, established in 2015, exists to champion the rights of informal traders who make up the bulk of Zimbabwe\u2019s working population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAccording to the 2024 ZIMSTAT Labour Force Survey, 85.5% of Zimbabweans are employed in the informal sector, yet their voices remain excluded from budget processes,\u201d said Chikomwe. \u201cWe want a situation where councils consult vendors, not harass them. The informal sector must be at the centre of local economic planning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LEDRIZ\u2019s Emmaculate Tracy Moyo delivered a presentation on the fundamentals of PFM and its significance in local governance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPublic Finance Management is about how councils collect revenue, allocate funds, and account for their expenditure,\u201d Moyo said. \u201cWithout transparency and citizen oversight, public money can easily be misused or diverted.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moyo noted that the 2022 Auditor-General\u2019s report highlighted serious issues within Mutare City Council, including poor financial reporting, lack of internal controls, and the unregistered status of Gimboki Clinic. \u201cThere are documented cases where companies were paid over US$300,000 without delivering services,\u201d she said. \u201cCommunities must demand explanations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another facilitator, Nyaraiwo Gutuza, presented on taxation in the informal economy. She said local authorities have the constitutional mandate to collect revenue through trading licenses, hawker permits, and market fees but must also deliver services in return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInformal traders often see taxation as punitive because they are not getting value,\u201d Gutuza said. \u201cYou cannot keep collecting money from people operating in broken, unsanitary environments without toilets or sheds. Tax compliance must come with accountability.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traders and residents echoed similar sentiments during the session. \u201cCouncil officials collect money from us daily, but our vending areas are still in a sorry state,\u201d said one vendor. \u201cWe need affordable tables, proper shelters, and clean toilets.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another resident raised concern about the condition of council clinics, particularly the lack of medicines. \u201cWe pay US$6 for a card, but most of the drugs we buy ourselves,\u201d the resident said. \u201cWorse still, they refer us to specific pharmacies like Hilltop in Sakubva. We suspect they are working with those pharmacies unlawfully.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participants called for stronger oversight on how council clinics operate and how funds are used. They urged the City of Mutare to engage citizens meaningfully in its budgeting process and provide timely public access to audit and expenditure reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LEDRIZ emphasized that good PFM leads to improved health services, education, infrastructure and public trust. \u201cWhen communities understand how public money works, they are better placed to demand quality services and transparency,\u201d said Moyo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The teach-in concluded with a commitment to sustained citizen\u2013duty bearer engagement. VISET pledged to continue mobilizing informal traders and residents to participate in future consultations and policy reviews.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are not stopping here,\u201d said Chikomwe. \u201cWe will continue following up with council to ensure that what was raised by vendors is addressed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The training also established a stakeholder database and provided tools for social audits, participatory budgeting, and advocacy. A final report with recommendations will be shared with the City of Mutare as part of VISET\u2019s accountability framework.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The LACE project, currently active in several cities including Beitbridge and Harare, aims to transform local governance by equipping citizens with knowledge and power to hold public officials accountable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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By Fanuel Chinowaita MUTARE , 13 July 2025 – The Vendors Initiative for Social and Economic Transformation (VISET) last week held a two-day Public Finance Management (PFM) training in Mutare, bringing together city officials, councillors, informal traders and residents to promote transparency, inclusive budgeting, and accountability in health service delivery. The workshop, held on 8\u20139…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[22,39,49,54,8],"class_list":["post-722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news","tag-city-of-mutare","tag-manica-youth-assembly","tag-mura","tag-umrat","tag-zimbabwe"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/722","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=722"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/722\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":728,"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/722\/revisions\/728"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewasupost.co.zw\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}