The City of Bulawayo has agreed to lease Lobengula Clinic to the government for the establishment of a dedicated drug and substance abuse rehabilitation centre, as the city grapples with growing demand for treatment and recovery services.
The decision comes amid a national drug and substance abuse crisis that has hit young people particularly hard, with illicit drugs and misused prescription medicines driving addiction, family breakdown, and pressure on health facilities.
In Bulawayo, the lack of dedicated rehabilitation infrastructure has left much of the burden on Ingutsheni Central Hospital, the city’s main psychiatric referral institution.
The proposed rehabilitation centre will be established at Stand 73544 in Lobengula, a 6 600-square-metre property comprising office space measuring 444 square metres, toilets covering 39 square metres, and a 108-square-metre carport.
According to a council town planning report, the proposal follows a request from the government to make the facility available for a standalone drug and substance abuse rehabilitation centre. Bulawayo’s director of health services Edwin Sibanda said the request directly responds to national directives aimed at combating drug and substance abuse.
“The City of Bulawayo has a critical shortage of such facilities, and this initiative aligns with national efforts to expand access to rehabilitation services,” Sibanda said.
The government had previously directed local authorities to identify and make suitable facilities available for rehabilitation centres.
The directive followed a Cabinet recommendation made in 2023, which mandated local authorities to identify suitable premises for such centres.
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The Health Services Department said the urgency had been reinforced by a compliance notice issued to local authorities, requiring them to submit identified facilities to the national command centre, a government coordinating body for the anti-drug drive.
Bulawayo’s proposed intervention is particularly significant because Ingutsheni, the city’s main institution dealing with substance-abuse-related admissions, is primarily a psychiatric hospital.
Sibanda said the hospital had been overwhelmed by substance abuse admissions, resulting in sections of the institution being converted to accommodate such cases.
“This is not ideal for rehabilitation, as its core mandate is mental health care,” the report said.
The establishment of a dedicated facility at Lobengula is expected to allow Ingutsheni to concentrate on its primary mental health mandate, while patients requiring rehabilitation receive treatment in a more appropriate environment.
The proposed Lobengula centre is also expected to provide services including counselling, psychosocial support, medical assessments, and structured recovery programmes.
“Repurposing Lobengula Clinic for this purpose would provide a purpose-built, standalone facility that can offer comprehensive services,” Sibanda said.
The development is also part of a wider provincial response to the drug and substance abuse crisis.
The Bulawayo Metropolitan Provincial Committee on Drug and Substance Abuse has confirmed plans for two additional rehabilitation centres: one at Ingutsheni Hospital and another inLobengula.
Under the proposed lease arrangement, the government, through the relevant ministry, is expected to occupy and develop the clinic into a provincial drug rehabilitation centre.
The city proposed a monthly rental of US$1 200, excluding VAT, with an initial lease period of 10 years, subject to review.
The government will also be responsible for water, electricity, and other related charges.
The lease will be subject to Section 152(2) of the Urban Councils Act, which governs the leasing or disposal of council property.
The council resolved to recommend leasing the property to the government under the proposed conditions.
The Health Services Department said the initiative would support national efforts to combat drug abuse while addressing the shortage of rehabilitation facilities in Bulawayo.
The proposed 10-year lease could provide the government with a sufficiently long period to establish a functioning rehabilitation centre.
