USD 90 Million for a Muddy Footpath? Zimbabwe’s “Trabablas Interchange” is a National Embarrassment
Next month, Zimbabweans are expected to start using the so-called “Trabablas Interchange”—a project hyped for years as a flagship of progress, a modern marvel poised to transform Harare’s traffic landscape. What has been delivered, however, is a deeply underwhelming mess: a USD 90 million pile of red earth, half-baked curves, and what appears to be a glorified footpath draped over bare embankments.
The latest photos from the construction site, proudly shared by “Road Watch Zimbabwe,” do not inspire national pride—they provoke justified outrage. A handful of tarred segments snake through mounds of exposed soil, flanked by scattered workers and construction vehicles. There’s no coherent structure in sight, no sign of the multilayered, efficient traffic artery that was promised. The illusion of progress is created with drone angles and Photoshop-ready lighting, but the reality on the ground is crude, unsealed, and nowhere near operational standard.
Where Did the Money Go?
Let’s be clear: USD 90 million is no small sum. It’s enough to construct several fully functional interchanges in countries with honest procurement practices and competent project management. Instead, Zimbabwe has ended up with something that, at best, resembles a Google Earth sketch of what a road might become. This begs the urgent question: where did the money go?
There’s no plausible justification for this cost overrun unless one includes the typical ingredients of Zimbabwean statecraft—corruption, cronyism, and cover-ups. The opacity of the tender process, the absence of an independently audited breakdown of costs, and the usual chorus of official spin all point to the same pattern we’ve seen time and again: infrastructure as a conduit for looting.
“Trabablas Downloading”—But Who’s Paying?
The galling part is that officials and online propagandists have the audacity to brand this debacle with pop-culture flair—“Trabablas downloading,” they say, as if the public should laugh off the waste. What’s really downloading is another generational debt burden for the youth of this country, another chance for elites to siphon public funds while ordinary Zimbabweans dodge potholes and walk long distances due to a broken public transport system.
This interchange, in its current state, is not an achievement. It is a monument to mediocrity. A tragic reminder that in Zimbabwe, the bar is set so low that a road with visible mud and missing safety features can be celebrated as a national milestone.
We Deserve Better
The people of Zimbabwe are not asking for miracles—they are asking for accountability. If USD 90 million was truly spent, there should be roads fit for purpose, lanes ready for traffic, signage installed, and drainage secured. What we see instead is something that looks more like a road-making rehearsal than a finished interchange.
Until the government begins to treat infrastructure with the seriousness it deserves—through transparency, competence, and zero tolerance for corruption—“Trabablas” will remain an apt metaphor. A project caught in perpetual buffering mode, downloading forever, but never truly delivered.
