BCC cracks down on illegal ECD centres, businesses

Several Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres in Bulawayo are operating without approved building plans and medically examined food handlers, as health inspectors uncovered widespread non-compliance across the city.

This emerged in the latest council minutes, which show that last month the Bulawayo City Council issued 94 intimations or formal warning notices to businesses and organisations operating illegally, with pre-schools, butcheries, restaurants and lodges among the worst offenders.

The April 2026 report of the Health, Housing and Education Committee, tabled before the full council, paints a worrying picture of widespread violations in the city’s commercial and food-handling sectors.

The 94 warning notices stemmed from 2 091 inspections carried out for routine compliance monitoring, shop licence inspections, non-trading premises inspections, renewal of registration certificates, health reports and domiciliary visits.

Particularly alarming was the number of ECD centres and pre-schools, most of them located in Nkulumane, found operating without development permits, council-approved plans or medically examined food handlers.

Among the cited institutions was Step Ahead ECD at 8990 Nkulumane, which was operating without a development permit and approved building plans.

The same institution was also flagged at a second location, 9013 Nkulumane, for similar violations.

El-Shaddai Day Care and Pre-School at 2037 Nkulumane was found operating without council-approved plans, while its food handlers had not undergone medical examinations. Inspectors also noted overcrowding in classrooms.

Other institutions cited included Future Builders Pre-School (3284 Nkulumane), St Limon Pre-School (3673 Nkulumane), Daveland Infant School (2480 Nkulumane), Future Champions Pre-School (2769 Nkulumane), Trinity Pre-School (2671 Nkulumane), Little Shining Stars Pre-School (5897 Nkulumane), Little Angels Day Care (5687 Nkulumane), Alpha Day Care (6149 Nkulumane) and Rise and Shine Day Care (3951 Nkulumane).

Shiloh Heart Infant School at 9778 Amersham Road, Paddonhurst, was found operating with an expired permit and without approved building plans.

Inspectors also discovered toilets had been converted into a storeroom, while poor housekeeping was observed on the premises.

The health inspectorate further reported that cooked food continues to be sold illegally from street corners and vehicle boots, with some operators running illegal kitchens overnight at car parks.

Some operators included Towerview at 120 Jason Moyo Street, which was operating without a shop licence, while Fairmind Stationery at 120A Jason Moyo Street and Maxmin on 12th Avenue faced similar violations.

Several butcheries and food outlets were also cited for serious health breaches.

Southwold Butchery, located between Bath Road and Evesham Road, was operating without a registration certificate and without food handler certificates for workers.

Woza Woza Restaurant Special, also located between Bath Road and Evesham Road, was found displaying a liquor licence without proof of payment to council and operating a restaurant without a registration certificate.

Sai Mart at 79 Jason Moyo Street was cited for multiple violations, including a non-functional hand washing basin in the butchery section, lack of hot water, rusted meat hooks and pest infestation involving rats and cockroaches.

Inspectors also found that cooking oil used for chips had been in use for one month and three days.

Cecil/HBC Hotel at 54 Fife Street was cited for pollution and other non-compliance issues, while Pamusha Lodge B10 BT was found operating illegally without a permit or council-approved plans.

The council also condemned significant quantities of food deemed unfit for human consumption.

Some of the food was found in shops such as Zama Supermarket on 4C Railway Avenue, whose Mazoe and flour were condemned after inspectors found it expired and damaged.

Sai Mart had Gloria flour and Koo Baked Beans condemned due to contamination and dented cans.

At 43 Robert Mugabe Way, 145kg of beef belonging to Ability Moyo was condemned after it was found to be uninspected and improperly transported.

Inspectors also condemned 66 expired 500ml bottles of Shooters alcoholic beverages.

Simbisa Brands had 109kg of chicken and 4.2kg of cooked rice condemned as unwholesome.

At Texas Steak on 4C Bristol Road in Belmont, inspectors condemned expired food products including 120kg of steak seasoning, 48kg of Texas Steak seasoning, 3kg of Smokey Durban spice, 2kg of Rousal Beef Stew Soup, 540kg of Russian dye and 450kg of mayonnaise.

Meadow Meats on 49 Plumtree Road had expired Black Forest spice confiscated, while Chicken Inn at the ZITF grounds on Hillside Road had five litres of expired Creamy Garlic Dipping Sauce condemned.

The council minutes also show that the inspectorate department attended to 19 public complaints during the month of April.

Among them was a complaint regarding the illegal keeping of poultry at 112 Strauss Road in Barham Green. Inspectors confirmed the nuisance and issued a formal warning ordering the immediate removal of the poultry.

A complaint by Jina Abrahim and Sons at 72 Herbert Chitepo Street over dust caused by roadworks was referred to the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) and Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) departments.

Several complaints over inconsistent waste collection were also received from businesses including The Standard, Meat Hive Butchery at 37 Third Avenue and Lonnersden Investments at 49 Lobengula Street.

Meanwhile, a complaint of a persistent sewer blockage at Stand 6011 Emganwini revealed overflowing gully traps at three households, with heavy foul smells reported around the area. Two drinking water samples were collected for laboratory analysis.

At Stand 5732 Emganwini, inspectors responding to a complaint of sewer-contaminated drinking water conducted a 50-metre radius survey.

One water sample was described as “heavily turbid and foul-smelling” and was discarded without analysis.