Harare– Binga South legislator, Fanuel Cumanzala has issued a forceful demand for the 2026 National Budget to direct significant investment to the Zambezi Valley, condemning what he calls “generations of exclusion” that have left the resource-rich region in a state of chronic underdevelopment.

In an interview, the legislator stated that communities across districts like Mbire, Muzarabani, Binga, and Kariba remain “the richest in natural resources, yet the poorest in public investment,” and require immediate, targeted funding to address critical deficits.

The region faces severe infrastructure and service failures, including impassable road networks, a scarcity of clean water, few secondary schools, and understaffed health clinics. Hon. Cumanzala highlighted that these challenges are exacerbated by high poverty and extreme climate vulnerability.

“The national budget keeps overlooking the places that need investment the most,” Cumanzala said. “This pattern must change.”

Communities in the Zambezi Valley are on the frontline of the climate crisis, enduring recurring droughts, floods, and cyclones. Despite this, the legislator lamented a critical lack of dedicated climate adaptation funds or ring-fenced disaster-management resources for these high-risk districts.

“Our people are the frontline victims of climate change,” Cumanzala stated. “It is unacceptable that they receive no targeted protection.”

He singled out the severe human-wildlife conflict as a daily threat, with elephants, lions, and crocodiles destroying fields, killing livestock, and endangering lives. Cumanzala criticized the government for the absence of a funded compensation mechanism for affected families.

“Communities living with wildlife receive the least benefit and the highest burden. That is not conservation — that is neglect,” he said.

To rectify these issues, Hon. Cumanzala presented a list of key demands for the 2026 budget. These include the creation of a dedicated Zambezi Valley Development Fund, investment in climate-smart agriculture, a fully funded Human-Wildlife Conflict Compensation Fund, and a major push to expand water, education, and health infrastructure.

Emphasizing the need for inclusive development, Hon. Cumanzala concluded, “We demand development that reaches the last household along the Zambezi. Our people want dignity, equity and inclusion. This is our moment—no valley, no village, no child must be left behind.”

The appeal sets a clear benchmark for the government’s upcoming budget planning, placing the plight of the Zambezi Valley’s communities at the center of national fiscal policy debates.