Council, church join hands to rehabilitate and upg...

Council, church join hands to rehabilitate and upgrade Carter House

Mbare clinic delivering 500 babies monthly' -Newsday Zimbabwe — Harare mayor Jacob Mafume

Bridget Mabanda

The Church of Christ of Latter Days Saints, is keen to partner the City of Harare in rehabilitating Carter House and turn it into a quality maternity facility.

On Thursday the Director of Health Services, Dr. Prosper Chonzi, Ward 19 Cllr Munyaradzi Kufahakutizwi and council officials toured Carter House with Elder and Sister Peterson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Mayor Jacob Mafume said the facility will in future not only focus on maternity services, but will spread to other medical accessories as it will become a medical village.

“The facility can grow into something else once we equip it and transform its status to that of a district hospital.

“But what we need to do is create a medical multi-health facility with shopping centres and a bias towards healthcare,” he said.

He added that the council and the church must jointly renovate Carter House in the way that is beneficial to the community.

“Community must feel that they are part of the facility hence the need not to exclude it,” he said.

Council gained control of the building in 2019 and in 2022, Mafume ordered the City of Harare Health department to use it together with Pagent House as extensions to Mbare Polyclinic’s Edith Opperman Maternity unit to ease the plight of expecting mothers.

While the City of Harare owns Carter House Canteen and Helping Hand Institute in Mbare, the properties have reportedly been invaded by Solomon Tavengwa Co-operative which is led by one Absolom Mutamba.

The occupation is illegal as there was no lease agreement or any other agreement between the two parties.