Staff Writer
Youth and traditional leaders in Gutu have submitted a petition to the Devure Sub Catchment Council over worsening water challenges linked to the operations of a brick moulding company. Villagers are appealing to the Government and the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) for urgent intervention.
The Young Farmers Group (YFG), part of the Youth Empowerment and Skills Development Association (YESDA), together with more than ten village heads from Gutu, has called for the immediate cessation of a commercial brick moulding project at Chisheche Business Centre. The project has dried up the Mukuro and Nyamashato rivers, which locals say have not experienced such drought conditions in decades.
Located about 10 kilometres from Mpandawana Growth Point, the brick moulding operation has forced villagers to walk long distances—up to 15 kilometres—to fetch water for their cattle, while their gardens have withered. Some residents have reported that several of the now dry pools are sacred, and the business is operating in wetlands. The company has been accused of extracting water from the rivers without permission, a claim supported by water resources data from the Devure Sub Catchment Council.
The petition, written in October 2025, was addressed to the manager of the Devure Catchment Council, the Gutu Rural District Council, and the EMA, demanding that the project be halted immediately. The young farmers and village heads are urging the authorities to act swiftly to protect community livelihoods and restore water security.
The Devure Sub Catchment Council is a water management body established under the Water Act of 2000 and operationalized by Statutory Instrument 209 of 2000, functioning under the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, and Rural Development.
The petition from Gutu’s youth and traditional leaders reflects a growing grassroots demand for accountability in natural resource management. As rivers dry and sacred pools vanish, communities are left vulnerable to hunger, thirst, and cultural loss. Their call to halt the brick moulding project is not only about water—it is about safeguarding livelihoods, protecting heritage, and ensuring that development respects both people and the environment.