THE Transport and Infrastructural Development ministry reportedly faces a high staff turnover with over 30% of posts all the way to managerial level vacant.
This is contained in a Parliamentary Portfolio Committee report on the 2024 quarterly budget performance report for the ministry.
The ministry’s budget was revised from ZiG140 547 514 to ZiG4 603 327 594 as reported in the year 2024.
A significant 93% of the budget was allocated to roads, while other programmes were allocated 4% (policy and administration), 3% (rail and aviation) and 0,003% (inland water’s infrastructure).
In terms of the budget allocation by economic classification, 82,8% of the budget was allocated to capital spending.
According to the report, this left the ministry with a shoe-string budget for human resources, forcing disgruntled workers to leave citing poor working conditions.
The report said the ministry had an approved total workforce of 1 785.
“By the end of the fourth quarter, 536 vacancies, which translate to a 30% vacancy rate, were reported within the ministry,” the report read.
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There are vacancies in top management, middle management, supervisory management, engineers and operational and support
staff.
“The committee noted that the ongoing job evaluation exercise, high staff turnover rate, unattractive conditions of service and limited funding were the major reasons for the high vacancy rate,” the report read.
“As a way to cushion itself from the impacts of high staff turnover the ministry had requested Treasury concurrence which was granted and has, therefore, filled a total of 76 vacant posts as of quarter 4 of 2024, engaged contract workers in manpower critical shortage areas and lastly, 59 engineers were allocated vehicles and fuel for official use, a measure to retain staff within the ministry.”
The committee recommended that the ministry should ensure the vacant posts are filled by December 31, 2025.
“Furthermore, the ministry should adopt a comprehensive gender-sensitive recruitment strategy that ensures women are equally represented at all levels,” the committee said.
“It is critical that these actions align with the government’s broader vision for inclusivity and equality.”
The committee also recommended that the ministry should revise its budget allocation strategy by October to ensure a more equitable distribution of funds across all transport sectors during the budget planning
phase.
“In recognition of the importance of maintaining existing infrastructure, the committee recommends that the ministry should allocate at least 10% of its budget to the maintenance unit by September 30, 2025,” the committee said.
“Without this, the government risks incurring escalating future repair costs, especially for roads, loss of service quality and reduced infrastructure lifespan.
“Preventive maintenance is far more cost-effective than reactive repairs and prioritising it will safeguard Zimbabwe’s investment in infrastructure for future generations.”
