PROVINCES OF ZIMBABWE

Herein this post, we discussed the ten provinces that are in Zimbabwe, we explained each of them and that includes the population of each province.

Provinces are constituent political entities of Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe currently has ten provinces, two of which are cities with provincial status. Zimbabwe is a unitary state, and its provinces exercise only the powers that the central government chooses to delegate. Provinces are divided into districts, which are divided into wards.

Read: POLITICAL HISTORY OF ZIMBABWE

The Constitution of Zimbabwe delineates provincial governance and powers. After constitutional amendments in 1988, provinces were administered by a governor directly appointed by the President of Zimbabwe. Since the 2013 constitutional changes, there are technically no longer provincial governors, though in practice they remain in place as Ministers of State for Provincial Affairs. The 2013 Constitution also calls for the devolution of governmental powers and responsibilities where appropriate, though Zimbabwean opposition parties argue that the central government has yet to comply.

With the establishment of Company rule in Rhodesia in the 1890s, the country was divided into two provinces: Matabeleland in the west and Mashonaland in the east. Under British colonial rule as Southern Rhodesia, the colony was divided into five provinces. Later, the Rhodesian government expanded the number of provinces to seven: Manicaland, Matabeleland North and South, Mashonaland North and South, Midlands, and Victoria (today Masvingo). In the 1980s, Mashonaland North and South were reorganized to become three provinces (Mashonaland Central, East and West). The youngest provinces, Bulawayo and Harare, were created in 1997.

TEN PROVINCES OF ZIMBABWE

Zimbabwe is divided into ten provinces, the highest administrative division. Provinces of Zimbabwe are Bulawayo, Harare, Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, and Matabeleland South and Midlands

BULAWAYO

Bulawayo is the second largest city in the state of Zimbabwe. According to the 2016 official census, 1,200,337 people live in the city, which is also the central city of the country with the same name. The area is 1,706 square kilometers.

The name of the city means the battlefield in Ndebele, one of the official languages of the country. This means that the British troops defeated the local tribes and obtained these regions and as a result of this, the settlement of the region with the contributions of Cecil Rhodes, gave the name of the city that was established today.

HARARE

Harare is the capital and the largest province of Zimbabwe. Harare, which has provincial status, has a population of 1,606,000 according to 2013 official census results across all provincial borders. The area is 960 square kilometers.

The province is located in the northeastern part of the country. Economic life in the province is quite lively. Tobacco, corn, cotton, and citrus are sold from this country to the world.

MANICALAND

Manicaland is one of Zimbabwe’s ten existing provinces. Manicaland is adjacent to the Midlands in the west, Mashonaland East in the north, Masvingo in the northwest, and Mozambique in the south and west. According to the official census results of 2012, 1,752,698 people live in the province. The area is 36,459 square kilometers. The city of Mutare is the administrative capital of the province and the province is divided into seven districts.

MASHONALAND CENTRAL

Mashonaland Central is one of Zimbabwe’s ten existing provinces. The central province of Mashonaland is adjacent to Mashonaland West in the west, Mashonaland East in the southeast, Harare in the east, and Mozambique in the north. According to the official census results of 2012, 1,152,520 people live in the province. The area of the province is 28,347 square kilometers. Bindura is the administrative capital of the province and the province is divided into seven districts.

MASHONALAND EAST

Mashonaland East is one of the ten provinces of Zimbabwe in total. Mashonaland East is adjacent with the Midlands in the south, Mashonaland in the north, Harare and Mashonaland in the west, and Manicaland and Mozambique in the east. According to the official census results of 2012, 1,344,955 people live. The area of the province is 32,230 square kilometers. The city of Marondera is the administrative capital of the province and the province is divided into eight districts.

MASHONALAND WEST

Mashonaland West is one of the ten existing provinces of the African country of Zimbabwe. The province is adjacent to the Midlands in the south and southwest, Mashonaland in the northeast, Harare and Mashonaland in the east, Matabeleland in the west and Zambia in the west. According to the official census results of 2012, 1,501,656 people live in the province. The area is 57,441 square kilometers. Chinhoyi is the administrative capital of the province and is divided into six districts.

MASVINGO

Masvingo is one of Zimbabwe’s ten existing provinces. Masvingo is adjacent to the Midlands in the northwest, Manicaland in the northeast, Matabeleland in the southwest, Mozambique and the Republic of South Africa in the east. Masvingo also includes the area called Zimbabwe the Great, where there are important historical monuments in the name of Zimbabwe’s history. Due to the visit of these historical monuments, the province attracts many tourists to the region. According to the official census results of 2012, 1,485,090 people live in the province. The area is 36,459 square kilometers. Masvingo is the administrative capital of the province and the province is divided into seven districts.

MATABELELAND NORTH

Matabeleland North is one of the ten provinces of Zimbabwe in total. It is adjacent to the Midlands in the east, Mashonaland in the northeast, Bulawayo and Matabeleland in the south, Zambia in the north and Botswana in the west. The 100 m borderline with Namibia in the northwest is controversial.

This region, which is the only quadrangular border region in the world and which is connected to this border, is an unacceptable border point because it does not mutually formalize the border agreements of Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia countries.

According to the official census results of 2012, 749,017 people live in the province. The area of the region is 75,025 square kilometers. Lupane is the administrative capital of the province and the province is divided into six districts.

MATABELELAND SOUTH

Matabeleland South is one of the ten provinces of Zimbabwe in total. The southern province of Matabeleland is adjacent to the Midlands in the northeast, the Matabeleland to the north and Bulawayo to the north, Masvingo to the east, Botswana to the southwest and the Republic of South Africa to the south.

According to the official census results of 2012, 683,893 people live. The area is 54,172 square kilometers. Gwanda is the administrative capital of the province and the province is divided into six districts.

MIDLANDS

Midlands is a province of Zimbabwe. It has an area of 49,166 square kilometres (18,983 sq mi) and a population of 1,614,941 (2012). It is home to various peoples. Located at a central point in the country, it contains speakers of Shona, Ndebele, Tswana, Sotho and Chewa, as well as of various other languages. Gweru, the third-largest city in Zimbabwe, is the capital of the province. Midlands Province contains Kwekwe, a city of considerable mining and manufacturing industries, in which also the Sable Chemicals Trust maintains a presence.