Bulawayo

Bulawayo koBulawayo
City
View of Bulawayo's Central Business District (CBD) from Pioneer House by Prince Phumulani Nyoni. The CBD is 5.4 square kilometres and is in a grid pattern with 17 avenues and 11 streets
Flag Coat of arms
Nickname(s): 'City of Kings', 'Skies', 'Bluez' or 'Bulliesberg'
Motto: Si Ye Phambili
Location in the Bulawayo Province
Bulawayo Location in the Bulawayo Province
Coordinates: 20°10′12″S 28°34′48″E / 20.17000°S 28.58000°E / -20.17000; 28.58000Coordinates: 20°10′12″S 28°34′48″E / 20.17000°S 28.58000°E / -20.17000; 28.58000
Country	Zimbabwe
Province	Bulawayo
District	City of Bulawayo
Settled	1840
Incorporated (town)	1897
Incorporated (city)	1943
Divisions	4 Districts, 29 Wards, 156 Suburbs
Government
• Type	Provincial Municipality
• Mayor	Martin Moyo
Area
• City	1,706.8 km2 (659.0 sq mi)
• Water	129.3 km2 (49.9 sq mi)
• Urban	993.5 km2 (383.6 sq mi)
• Metro	1,706.8 km2 (659.0 sq mi)
Elevation[1]	1,358 m (4,455 ft)
Population (2012 census)
• City	653,337
• Density	380/km2 (990/sq mi)
• Urban	655,675
• Urban density	2,305/km2 (5,970/sq mi)
Time zone	SAST (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	not observed (UTC+2)
Area code(s)	9
Climate	Cwa
Website	citybyo.co.zw

Bulawayo is the second-largest city in Zimbabwe after the capital Harare, with, as of the 2012 census, a population of 653,337.^[2] It is located in Matabeleland, 439 km (273 mi) southwest of Harare, and is now treated as a separate provincial area from Matabeleland. The capital of Matabeleland North is now Lupane, as Bulawayo is a stand-alone province.

Colloquially Bulawayo is also known by various names, these being the 'City of Kings', 'Skies', 'Bluez', 'Bulliesberg' or 'KoNtuthu ziyathunqa' – a isiNdebele phrase for "a place that continually exudes smoke". This name arose from the city's historically large industrial base.^[3] The majority of the Bulawayo's population belongs to the Ndebele ethnic and language group.

For a long time in Zimbabwe's history Bulawayo was regarded as the industrial centre of Zimbabwe and the city served as the hub to the country's rail network with the National Railways of Zimbabwe headquartered there because of its strategic position near Botswana and South Africa.^[3] It is the nearest large city to Hwange National Park, Matobo National Park and Victoria Falls.

History

Inhabitant of Bulawayo, 1890

Bulawayo Scouts in 1893

The city was founded by the Ndebele king, Lobengula the son of King Mzilikazi kaMatshobana who settled in modern-day Zimbabwe around the 1840s after the Ndebele people's great trek from Zululand. The name Bulawayo comes from the isiNdebele word KoBulawayo meaning 'a place where he is being killed.' It is thought that at the time of the formation of the city, there was a civil war and a group of Ndebeles not aligned to Prince Lobengula were fighting him as they felt he was not the heir to the throne, hence he gave his capital the name 'where he (the prince) is being killed'. It is said that when King Lobengula named the place "KoBulawayo" his generals asked "who is being killed mtanenkosi (prince)?" and he replied "Yimi umntwanenkosi engibulawayo", meaning "its me the prince who is being killed". At the time Lobengula was just a prince fighting to ascend his father's (Mzilikazi) throne. It was common at the time for people to refer to Bulawayo as "KoBulawayo UmntwaneNkosi" "a place where they are fighting or rising against the prince". The name Bulawayo is imported from Nguniland which is a place once occupied by the Khumalo people. The place still exists and it is next to Richards Bay.

In the 1860s the city was further influenced by European intrigue and many colonial powers cast covetous eyes on Bulawayo and the land surrounding it. Britain made skilful use of private initiative in the shape of Cecil Rhodes and the Chartered Company to disarm the suspicion of her rivals. Lobengula once described Britain as a chameleon and himself as the fly.^[4]

During the 1893 Matabele War, the invasion by British South Africa Company troops forced King Lobengula to evacuate his followers, after first detonating munitions and setting fire to the town.^[5] BSAC troops and white settlers occupied the ruins. On 4 November 1893, Leander Starr Jameson declared Bulawayo a settlement under the rule of the British South Africa Company. Cecil Rhodes ordained that the new settlement be founded on the ruins of Lobengula's royal kraal, which is where the State House stands today. In 1897, the new town of Bulawayo acquired the status of municipality, Lt. Col. Harry White became one of the first mayors,^[6] and in 1943 Bulawayo became a city.

Siege

At the outbreak of the Second Matabele War, in March 1896, Bulawayo was besieged by Ndebele forces, and a laager was established there for defensive purposes. The Ndebele had experienced the brutal effectiveness of the British Maxim guns in the First Matabele War, so they never mounted a significant attack against Bulawayo, even though over 10,000 Ndebele warriors could be seen near the town. Rather than wait passively, the settlers mounted patrols, called the Bulawayo Field Force, under legendary figures such as Frederick Selous and Frederick Russell Burnham. These patrols rode out to rescue any surviving settlers in the countryside, and attacked the Ndebele. Within the first week of fighting, twenty men of the Bulawayo Field Force were killed and another fifty were wounded.

During the siege, conditions inside Bulawayo quickly deteriorated. By day, settlers could go to homes and buildings within the town, but at night they were forced to seek shelter in the much smaller laager. Nearly 1,000 women and children were crowded into the small area and false alarms of attacks were common. The Ndebele made a critical error during the siege in neglecting to cut the telegraph lines connecting Bulawayo to Mafikeng. This gave both the besieged Bulawayo Field Force and the British relief forces, coming from Salisbury and Fort Victoria, now Harare and Masvingo respectively 300 miles to the north, and from Kimberley and Mafeking 600 miles to the south, far more information than they would otherwise have had. Once the relief forces arrived in late May 1896, the siege was broken and an estimated 50,000 Ndebele retreated into their stronghold, the Matobo Hills near Bulawayo. Not until October 1896 would the Ndebele finally lay down their arms.

Modern city

Bulawayo City Hall

Bulawayo City Council Offices

Kenilworth Towers, residential flats

In recent years, Bulawayo has experienced a sharp fall in living standards coinciding with the severe economic crisis affecting the country. Today it is home to the strongest opposition to the government of Robert Mugabe. The main problems include poor investment and widespread unemployment. Water shortages due to lack of expansion in facilities and supplies have become steadily more acute since 1992. Cholera broke out in 2008.

Bulawayo City Council

Although controlled by the main opposition party MDC-T, the council has managed to stand out as the leading municipality in Zimbabwe in terms of service delivery to its residents, through various campaigns engineered by the city council such as the #mycitymypride campaign and #keepbyoclean on social media, these have been met with positive responses by residents and other stakeholders within the city. In recent years Bulawayo has now been widely perceived as the cleanest city in Zimbabwe due the councils effective waste management strategy, although like all major cities and towns in the country Bulawayo faces water challenges however the situation within the city has been described as manageable. In 2015 the City of Bulawayo was praised for its town planning which unlike major urban areas such as Harare and Chitungwiza has not been marred by corruption and problems such as illegal settlements.

Geography

Bougainvillea outside a Bulawayo home

Topography

The city sits on a plain that marks the Highveld of Zimbabwe and is close to the watershed between the Zambezi and Limpopo drainage basins. The land slopes gently downwards to the north and northwest. The southern side is hillier, and the land becomes more broken in the direction of the Matobo Hills to the south.

Petrea flower in a garden in Bulawayo

Climate

Due to its relatively high altitude, the city has a subtropical climate despite lying within the tropics. Under the Köppen climate classification, Bulawayo features a humid subtropical climate (Cwa), though it is a drier version of the climate. The mean annual temperature is 19.16 °C (66.44 °F),^[7] similar to Pretoria at a similar altitude but almost 600 km (373 mi) farther south. As with much of southern and eastern Zimbabwe, Bulawayo is cooled by a prevailing southeasterly airflow most of the year, and experiences three broad seasons: a dry, cool winter season from May to August; a hot dry period in early summer from late August to early November; and a warm wet period in the rest of the summer, early November to April. The hottest month is October, which is usually the height of the dry season. The average maximum temperature ranges from 21 °C (70 °F) in July to 30 °C (86 °F) in October. During the rainy season, daytime maxima are around 26 °C (79 °F). Nights are always cool, ranging from 8 °C (46 °F) in July to 16 °C (61 °F) in January.

The city's average annual rainfall is 594 mm (23 in), which supports a natural vegetation of open woodland, dominated by Combretum and Terminalia trees. Most rain falls in the December to February period, while June to August is usually rainless. Being close to the Kalahari Desert, Bulawayo is vulnerable to droughts and rainfall tends to vary sharply from one year to another. In 1978, 888 mm (35 in) of rain fell in the three months up to February (February 1944 is the wettest month on record with 368mm) while in the three months ending February 1983, only 84 mm (3 in) fell.

Demographics

Population census controversy

The population of Bulawayo according to the 2012 National census stands at 653 337,^[11] however this figure has been resoundingly rejected by the Bulawayo City Council authority with Councillor Martin Moyo claiming an anti-Bulawayo conspiracy to under fund projects in the city.^[12][13] The population of the city according to metropolitan council sources is closer to 1,5 million and a more closer and estimated figure being 1,2 million. Reports have alluded to the De-industrialization of the city as the reason for its population decline, a claim which was rubbished as council officials referred to the fact that in 1992 were the city's population stood at 620 936 the city has grown in the number of households due to urban expansion. City authorities also laid claim to the fact that the current water challenges facing the city were also as a result of an increasing population despite the economic challenges facing the city.

Economy

Bulawayo has long been known as the industrial hub of Zimbabwe. It has a large manufacturing presence, and large industries such as Merlin Textiles, Zimbabwe Engineering Company (Zeco), Hubert Davies, Radar Metal Industries, National Blankets, G & D Shoes, Merlin, Tregers Group, Stewarts & Lloyds, Hunyani Holdings, Cold Storage Commission. However, some of these companies have either moved operations to Harare or no longer exist altogether which has crippled Bulawayo's economy. The industries are deserted and the infrastructure has since been left to deteriorate, further deterring investors from operating in the city. The reason for the city's de-industrialization has been heralded to be the lack of infrastructure to support the size of the city and its operations and an unreliable source of water and the collapse of the rail infrastructure which was a core reason of placing industry in Bulawayo to begin with. Many locals argue that it is because of marginalisation they experience against the government due to cultural differences between the Shona in Harare and the Ndebele Proper in Bulawayo because the National railways of Zimbabwe (Headquarters Bulawayo) is a government parastatal and as such should have been thriving had it not been for embezzlement of allocated funds by company executives who are believed to be Shona. The water issue is not new and had brought about the "help a thirsty Matabele" initiative of the 1970s and the Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project which would put an end to the water issue in Matabeleland was drafted, however this project was put on hold soon after independence. these allegations have all been labelled hogwash by the relevant authorities, however they have only fuelled the secessionist initiative into a general opinion. Before the collapse of Zimbabwe's rail infrastructure, Bulawayo was an important transport hub, providing rail links between Botswana, South Africa and Zambia and promoting the city's development as a major industrial centre. The city still contains most of what remains of Zimbabwe's heavy industry and food processing capability including a Thermal Power Station which resumed operations in February 2011 after a capitalisation deal with the Government of Botswana where Bulawayo would supply 45 Megawatts in three years. Like many parts of the country, Bulawayo has for the past ten years seen a huge drop in service delivery and an increase in unemployment due to the number of resignations of people seeking better prospects across the border. Many people resorted to farming, mining and the black market for sustenance, while others depended on the little foreign currency that would be sent by family in other countries. However, with the introduction of the multi-currency system in 2009, a new approach is seen by investors in the city who admire the already-available infrastructure and the huge workforce and Bulawayo as great prospects for the future and is set to once again contribute greatly to the economy of Zimbabwe. The city is served by Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport which has been expanded a number of times to cope with the influx of visitors into the region. The Edgars clothing stores are headquartered in Bulawayo. The Rovos rail run luxury train, Pride of Africa makes a stop in Bulawayo for pick up and dropping off passengers. Bulawayo is situated along the Trans-African Highway network important trade route of Cairo – Cape Town Highway. Most of the city's industries are privately owned, especially in the transport sector.

The Bulawayo Centre

Important buildings and infrastructure

These include

The Nesbitt Castle, Bulawayo

• Ascot Centre
• NRZ building
• Bulawayo Centre
• Nesbitt Castle
• Fidelity Life Centre
• National University of Science and Technology
• Mhlahlandlela Government Complex

Government

Mayors since independence

Mayors during UDI

Mayors during the colonial period

Newspapers

• The Chronicle (Zimbabwe)
• The Sunday News (Zimbabwe)
• Umthunywa
• Newsday
• B-Metro
• The Sunday Times
• Southern Eye

Twin towns – Sister cities

Bulawayo is twinned with:

• Aberdeen, United Kingdom;
• Durban, South Africa;
• Pretoria, South Africa
• Katima Mulilo, Namibia.

Culture and recreation

Sports

Bulawayo is home to the Queens Sports Club and Bulawayo Athletic Club, two of the three grounds in Zimbabwe where test match cricket has been played. It is also home to Hartsfield Rugby grounds where many international Test matches have been played. Hartsfield was developed by Reg Hart, after whom the grounds were named, and on which field many of southern Africa's greatest rugby players have competed. It is home to two large football teams, Highlanders and Zimbabwe Saints. Other football teams include Bantu Rovers, Chicken Inn, How Mine and Quelaton.

Other important sporting and recreational facilities include

• Barbourfields Stadium
• Zimbabwe International Trade Fair Grounds
• Kumalo Hockey Stadium
• Ascot Racecourse
• Khami Ruins
• White City Stadium

Museums

Bulawayo has a number of museums of national importance, including the Natural History Museum of Zimbabwe, National Gallery, Bulawayo and the Bulawayo Railway Museum.

Parks

There are a number of parks in Bulawayo, including

• Centenary Park
• Barham Green
• Hillside Dams Conservancy
• Mabukweni

Suburbs and districts

Retained the old Estate Name.^[20][21]

Schools and colleges

In Bulawayo, there are 128 primary and 48 secondary schools.^[22]

Natives and residents

• Erich Bloch (economist), economist and columnist
• John H Abeles, physician, medical investor, philanthropist
• Marshall P. Baron, painter
• Robin Brown, cricketer
• NoViolet Bulawayo, writer
• Warren Carne, cyclist
• Brian Chikwava, writer and musician
• Charlene, Princess of Monaco, wife of Albert II, Prince of Monaco
• Charles Coghlan, lawyer, first Premier of Southern Rhodesia. (Coghlan was honoured by his burial, near Cecil Rhodes's grave, at "World's View" in the Matopo Hills near Bulawayo.)
• Charles Coventry, cricketer
• Kirsty Coventry, world-record swimmer
• Chelsy Davy, former girlfriend of Prince Harry
• Graham Edwards, cricketer
• Lucia Evans, winner of the 2006 Irish TV talent show You're A Star, born in Bulawayo
• Stanley Fischer, governor of the Bank of Israel
• Duncan Fletcher, cricketer, former coach of England national cricket team and current coach of Indian national cricket team
• Humphrey Gibbs, GCVO, KCMG, farmer, Governor of the colony of Southern Rhodesia (1959–1970)
• Norman Geras, professor of political philosophy, University of Manchester; writes normblog, a widely read UK blog
• Graeme Hick, Zimbabwean-born English cricketer
• Kubi Indi, development activist and businesswoman
• Tendayi Jembere, actor
• Graham Johnson Pianist, recognised as one of the world's leading vocal accompanists; also world authority on the song repertoire
• Doris Lessing, novelist, Nobel Prize in Literature
• Cont Mhlanga, playwright and founder of Amakhosi Theater
• August Musarurwa, composer of the tune "Skokiaan"
• Benjani Mwaruwari, footballer and former Zimbabwe team captain and also turned out for Blackburn Rovers and Manchester City
• Peter Ndlovu, footballer, former Zimbabwe team captain and considered to be the best Zimbabwean player of all time
• Lewin Nyatanga, Zimbabwean-born Welsh footballer
• Alexander Pines, professor of chemistry, University of California, Berkeley
• Nick Price, former world number one golfer, World Golf Hall of Fame member
• Ramadu, musician
• Surendran Reddy, musician, composer and performer
• Rozalla, dance music performer
• Ron Sandler, CEO Lloyd's of London; Chairman of Northern Rock bank
• Allan Savory, biologist
• Shingai Shoniwa, rock musician
• Alexander McCall Smith, CBE, FRSE, writer and Emeritus Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland; author of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series
• Joseph Sonnabend, physician, researcher, part of team to discover interferon
• Heath Streak, cricketer and former captain and current bowling coach of the Zimbabwe team
• Yvonne Vera, award-winning author
• David Coltart Former Minister of Education, Sports, Arts and Culture. (2008–2013)
• Cont Mhlanga Arts legend

Literature

The city of Bulawayo serves as the backdrop for French novel "Sale Hiver à Bulawayo", written by Soline de Thoisy (2011). It is the starting point for the 1925 novel by Agatha Christie, The Secret of Chimneys, where the main character is leading tours, and meets up with an old friend who gives him two jobs to do in England.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bulawayo.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Bulawayo.