By Staff Reporter
HARARE — Developers behind the US$3.8 million Watervlei Burial Park project have allocated 8,000 burial plots for liberation war veterans whose remains are believed to lie in unmarked graves in neighbouring countries, in a move aimed at restoring dignity to those who fought for Zimbabwe’s independence.
The dedicated graves, donated to the Memories of Zimbabwe Armed Struggle Trust (MOZAST), form part of a wider effort to facilitate the repatriation and reburial of veterans who died during the liberation struggle.
Project manager Ismail Nanabawa said the initiative had received the endorsement of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA) and MOZAST, reflecting growing support for the preservation of the country’s liberation history.
“An estimated 30,000 Zimbabwean war veterans are buried outside of the country in unmarked graves and even mass graves, some 45 years after the country’s liberation struggle,” Nanabawa said during a press briefing on Thursday.
The 80-hectare development along Seke Road is expected to accommodate around 8,000 liberation war heroes and will also help ease pressure on Harare’s existing burial facilities, including the Provincial Heroes Acre at Warren Hills. More than 200 jobs are expected to be created through the project.
Construction of the burial park began in late 2024 and the facility is expected to become operational during the final quarter of this year.
“In terms of total investment for the whole Watervlei Burial Park, we’re looking at investing US$3.8 million for the first phase of the project,” Nanabawa said.
“This includes everything, bearing in mind we are putting a massive fence around the entire site. We have a major plant as part of rehabilitating the ground to plant close to 1,000 trees.”
Nanabawa said extensive work had been undertaken to rehabilitate land that had been degraded by illegal dumping and sand poaching.
“What has taken us, I can’t put it in words exactly how much time and effort has gone into rehabilitating the sites. When I say illegal dumping, people often think it’s just a smoker, but some of these are higher than this gazebo. So that’s a significant cost for us,” he said.
He said major infrastructure costs would include roads, irrigation systems and access routes.
“The main portion of the works or the highest cost will be the roads. We have an irrigation system we have to build. We have the hearse ways we have to build,” he said.
“We also have the traffic circle, or depending on the Ministry of Transport’s final approval, whether we are building access lanes or traffic lights, we have a significant development to do on the intersection as well.”
To preserve the history of the liberation struggle, the development will feature a War Veterans Archway at the entrance to the veterans’ section and a museum within the Remembrance Village, which will be curated by MOZAST.
Meanwhile, the recently tabled Reburial and Memorialisation Bill, once enacted, is expected to provide a legal framework for Government, war veterans, churches, traditional leaders and families to work together on a structured and adequately resourced reburial programme.
The Watervlei Burial Park project represents a significant investment in honouring the country’s liberation icons and ensuring that those who sacrificed for Zimbabwe’s sovereignty receive the recognition and dignified resting place they deserve.
