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Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council claimed it to be about 1.2 million. Bulawayo covers an area of about in the western part of the country, along the Matsheumhlope River. Along with the capital Harare, Bulawayo is one of two cities in Zimbabwe that is also a province. Bulawayo was founded by a group led by Gundwane Ndiweni around 1840 as the
kraal Kraal (also spelled ''craal'' or ''kraul'') is an Afrikaans and Dutch word, also used in South African English, for an enclosure for cattle or other livestock, located within a Southern African settlement or village surrounded by a fence of th ...
of Mzilikazi, the Ndebele king and was known as Gibixhegu. His son,
Lobengula Lobengula Khumalo (c. 1845 – presumed January 1894) was the second and last official king of the Northern Ndebele people (historically called Matabele in English). Both names in the Ndebele language mean "the men of the long shields", a refere ...
, succeeded him in the 1860s, and changed the name to kobulawayo and ruled from Bulawayo until 1893, when the settlement was captured by
British South Africa Company The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalize on the expecte ...
soldiers during the First Matabele War. That year, the first white settlers arrived and rebuilt the town. The town was besieged by Ndebele warriors during the Second Matabele War. Bulawayo attained municipality status in 1897, and city status in 1943. Historically, Bulawayo has been the principal industrial centre of Zimbabwe; its factories produce cars and car products, building materials, electronic products, textiles, furniture, and food products. Bulawayo is also the hub of Zimbabwe's rail network and the headquarters of the National Railways of Zimbabwe. Bulawayo's central business district (CBD) covers in the heart of the city, and is surrounded by numerous suburbs. The majority of the city's population belong to the Ndebele people, with minorities of Shona and other groups. Bulawayo is home to over a dozen colleges and universities, most notably the National University of Science and Technology, Bulawayo Polytechic College, Zimbabwe School of Mines, and the United College of Education. The Natural History Museum of Zimbabwe, formerly the National Museum, is located in Bulawayo. The city is close to tourist sites such as Matobo National Park and the Khami World Heritage Site.


History

The city was founded by the Ndebele king
Lobengula Lobengula Khumalo (c. 1845 – presumed January 1894) was the second and last official king of the Northern Ndebele people (historically called Matabele in English). Both names in the Ndebele language mean "the men of the long shields", a refere ...
, the son of King Mzilikazi, born of Matshobana, who settled in modern-day Zimbabwe around the 1840s. This followed the Ndebele people's great trek from northern Kwazulu. The name ''Bulawayo'' comes from the Ndebele word ''bulala'' and it translates to "the one to be killed". It is thought that at the time of the formation of the city there was a civil war. Mbiko ka Madlenya Masuku, a trusted confidant of King Mzilikazi and leader of the Zwangendaba regiment, fought Prince Lobhengula as he did not believe that he was the legitimate heir to the throne. This was because Lobhengula was born to a Swazi mother, and Masuku felt that she was of a lesser class. He named his capital "the place of the one to be killed". At the time Lobengula was a prince fighting to ascend his father's throne. It was common at the time for people to refer to Bulawayo as ''Bulawayo UmntwaneNkosi'', "a place where they are fighting or rising against the prince". The city of Bulawayo coincidentally has a similar name to the capital of the great Zulu warrior king Shaka ka Senzangakhona in Kwazulu, where Mzilikazi and his Khumalo clan and other
Nguni people The Nguni people are a Bantu ethnic group from South Africa, with off-shoots in neighbouring countries in Southern Africa. Swazi (or Swati) people live in both South Africa and Eswatini, while Northern Ndebele people live in both South Africa (a ...
came from. In the 1860s, the city was influenced by European intrigue. Many colonial powers cast covetous eyes on Bulawayo and the land surrounding it because of its strategic location. Britain made skillful use of private initiative in the shape of
Cecil Rhodes Cecil John Rhodes (5 July 1853 – 26 March 1902) was a British mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896. An ardent believer in British imperialism, Rhodes and his Br ...
and the Chartered Company to disarm the suspicion of her rivals. Lobengula once described Britain as a chameleon and himself as the fly. During the 1893 First Matabele War,
British South Africa Company The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalize on the expecte ...
(BSAC) troops invaded and forced King Lobengula to evacuate his followers, after first detonating munitions and setting fire to the town. BSAC troops and white settlers occupied the ruins. On 4 November 1893, Leander Starr Jameson declared Bulawayo a settlement under the rule of the BSAC. Cecil Rhodes ordered the new settlement to be founded on the ruins of Lobengula's royal kraal, a typical action by a conquering power. This is where the
State House State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
stands today. In 1897, the new town of Bulawayo acquired the status of municipality in the British colonial system, and Lt. Col. Harry White was appointed as one of the first mayors.


Siege

At the outbreak of the Second Matabele War, in March 1896, Bulawayo was besieged by Ndebele forces. The settlers established a laager here for defensive purposes. The Ndebele had experienced the brutal effectiveness of the Maxim guns employed by BSAC troops in the First Matabele War, so they never mounted a significant attack against Bulawayo, although over 10,000 Ndebele warriors gathered to surround the town. Rather than wait passively for attack, the settlers mounted patrols, called the Bulawayo Field Force, under Frederick Selous and Frederick Russell Burnham. These patrols rode out to rescue any surviving settlers in the countryside and attacked the Ndebele. In the first week of fighting, 20 men of the Bulawayo Field Force were killed and 50 were wounded. An unknown number of Ndebele were killed and wounded. During the siege, conditions in Bulawayo quickly deteriorated. By day, settlers could go to homes and buildings in the town, but at night they were forced to seek shelter in the much smaller laager. Nearly 1,000 women and children were crowded into the small area and false alarms of attacks were common. The Ndebele neglected to cut the telegraph lines connecting Bulawayo to
Mafikeng Mafikeng, officially known as Mahikeng and previously Mafeking (, ), is the capital city of the North West province of South Africa. Close to South Africa's border with Botswana, Mafikeng is northeast of Cape Town and west of Johannesburg. In ...
. The settlers and forces appealed for relief, and the BSAC sent additional troops from Salisbury and Fort Victoria (now Harare and Masvingo respectively) to the north, and from
Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia * Kimberley (Western Australia) ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley * Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania * Kimberley, Tasmania a small town * County of Kimberley, a ...
and Mafeking to the south. Once the relief forces arrived in late May 1896, the siege was broken. An estimated 50,000 Ndebele retreated into their stronghold of the Matobo Hills near Bulawayo. Not until October 1896 did the Ndebele finally surrender their arms to the invaders.


Modern Bulawayo

By the late 1930s, Bulawayo was no longer the country's biggest city. Influence and activity moved eastwards to the other cities, especially Salisbury, a trend which continues up to the present day. Despite this, after the Second World War, prosperity and population growth revived, as the city became an industrial powerhouse, peaking during the Federal years as new markets opened in Malawi and Zambia. However, Bulawayo trailed the development of other cities notably, Johannesburg, Harare and Cape Town during the same period. In 1943, Bulawayo received city status. By 1992,
population decline A population decline (also sometimes called underpopulation, depopulation, or population collapse) in humans is a reduction in a human population size. Over the long term, stretching from prehistory to the present, Earth's total human population ...
and slow growth were beginning to occur due to structural
neoliberal Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent fa ...
reforms and underinvestment which disproportionately affected heavy industry. In response, Bulawayo sought to re-invent itself as a 'heritage city', with its wide main streets refurbished and its Victorian architecture and industrial heritage preserved. Institutions such as the
Bulawayo Railway Museum Bulawayo Railway Museum (established 1972) is a railway museum located at Bulawayo railway station in Zimbabwe that houses several exhibitions on the history of the railway system in Zimbabwe, formerly Rhodesia. Its oldest exhibits date back to 18 ...
and Nesbitt Castle were handsomely restored. The city was also recognised as a centre of excellence in tertiary education and research. The National University of Science and Technology, Zimbabwe was formed and expanded and other colleges growth also accelerated. Since the late 20th century, Bulawayo has suffered a sharp fall in living standards coinciding with the protracted economic crisis affecting the country. The main challenges the city faces, include underinvestment, declining
infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and priv ...
, de-industrialisation and the effects of corruption and nepotism. Much of the city's educated workers have migrated south to neighbouring South Africa or further afield to the United Kingdom, Canada and
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. Public service concerns have become steadily more acute, with particular concern in the health sector from a growing shortage of experienced doctors and nurses. As a result, the city faced an avoidable
cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...
outbreak in 2008. Though the city is the centre of the southern population generally categorized as the Matebele, the population includes various ethnicities, as well as a small number of expats, mostly from neighbouring countries. The Central Business District has the widest roads. These were designed to accommodate the carts that were used as a primary means of transport when the town was planned and erected. Bulawayo is nicknamed the "City of Kings" or "kontuthu ziyathunqa"—a Ndebele phrase for "smoke arising". This name arose from the city's historically large industrial base. The large cooling towers of the coal-powered electricity generating plant situated in the city centre once used to exhaust steam and smoke over the city. Following Operation Murambatsvina (Operation Drive out filth) in 2005, squatters who had been forcibly evicted from their homes in the Killarney and Ngozi Mine informal settlements returned to their shacks and started rebuilding them. File:Bulawayo City Hall.jpg, Bulawayo City Hall File:Kenilworth Towers, Ascot.jpg, Kenilworth Towers, residential flats


Suburbs

:Retained the old estate name.


Demographics


Population census controversy

The population of Bulawayo, according to the 2012 national census, stood at 653,337; however, this figure has been rejected by the Bulawayo City Council authority with Councillor Martin Moyo claiming an anti-Bulawayo conspiracy to under-fund projects in the city.


Ethnic groups

The vast majority of Bulawayo City residents were Black African with 97.96%. Other ethnic groups in the city were
Coloured Coloureds ( af, Kleurlinge or , ) refers to members of multiracial ethnic communities in Southern Africa who may have ancestry from more than one of the various populations inhabiting the region, including African, European, and Asian. South ...
(0.9%), White (0.75%), Asian (0.22%). Members of other ethnic groups comprised 0.02%, and 0.14% of the city did not state their ethnic group. There were 4,926 White Zimbabweans living in Bulawayo in 2012.


Economy

Bulawayo was known as the industrial hub of Zimbabwe. This has led to the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair being hosted in Bulawayo. It had a large manufacturing presence with large industries based here before Zimbabwe's economic decline. However, some of these companies have either moved operations to Harare or have closed down — which has crippled Bulawayo's economy. Most factories are deserted and the infrastructure has since been left to deteriorate. The reason for the de-industrialization has largely been political, with some factories like Goldstar Sugars removing machinery to open new factories in Harare. When the Zimbabwean government passed indigenisation laws, some successful businesses were taken over by ZANU–PF supporters, only to close down a few years later. Many locals argue that it is because of marginalisation they experience against the government due to political tensions with the ZANU PF government in Harare and the MDC run Bulawayo council, for instance, the National railways of Zimbabwe (headquarters in Bulawayo) is a government owned entity and, as such, should have been thriving had it not been for embezzlement of funds by company executives who are believed to be Shona. The water issue is not new and had brought about the "help a thirsty Matabele" initiative of the 1970s and the Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project which would put an end to the water issue in Matabeleland was drafted; however, this project was put on hold soon after independence. These allegations have all been refuted by national authorities. The city still contains the bulk of Zimbabwe's heavy industry and food processing capability. Like many parts of the country, Bulawayo has for the past ten years seen a huge drop in service delivery and an increase in unemployment, with many who can opting to seek better prospects abroad. Many people resorted to farming, mining, and the black market for sustenance, while others depended on the little foreign currency that would be sent by family in other countries. However, with inauguration of the Mnangagwa government, a new approach is seen by investors in the city who admire the already-available infrastructure; the huge workforce; and Bulawayo as a potential business hub. It is set to once again contribute greatly to the economy of Zimbabwe.


Landmarks and Institutions

These include: *Ascot Centre *Bulawayo Centre *Bulawayo Golf Club *Fidelity Life Centre *Mhlahlandlela Government Complex * Nesbitt Castle *NRZ building * National University of Science and Technology


Government

Bulawayo is governed by the
Bulawayo City Council Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council cl ...
, which is headed by the Mayor of Bulawayo.


Culture

Bulawayo has museums of national importance, including the Natural History Museum of Zimbabwe, National Gallery, Bulawayo and the
Bulawayo Railway Museum Bulawayo Railway Museum (established 1972) is a railway museum located at Bulawayo railway station in Zimbabwe that houses several exhibitions on the history of the railway system in Zimbabwe, formerly Rhodesia. Its oldest exhibits date back to 18 ...
. There are a number of parks in Bulawayo, including * Centenary Park (which iancludes an amphitheatre, lawns and a large fountain) * Barham Green * Hillside Dams Conservancy (which has a number of dams within it) * Mabukweni


Geography

Bulawayo is located in the south west of Zimbabwe. It is in the middle of the savanna country. It has 4 seasons with rains starting in late October to about March. Coldest months being May and June with July being cold and windy.


Topography

The city sits on a plain that marks the Highveld of Zimbabwe and is close to the watershed between the Zambezi and Limpopo drainage basins. The land slopes gently downwards to the north and northwest. The southern side is hillier, and the land becomes more broken in the direction of the Matobo Hills to the south.


Climate

Due to its relatively high altitude, the city has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
despite lying in the tropics. Under the Köppen climate classification, Bulawayo features a semiarid climate (BSh). The mean annual temperature is , similar to Pretoria at a similar altitude but almost 600 km (373 mi) further south. As with much of southern and eastern Zimbabwe, Bulawayo is cooled by a prevailing southeasterly airflow most of the year and experiences three broad seasons: a dry, cool winter season from May to August; a hot dry period in early summer from late August to early November; and a warm wet period in the rest of the summer, early November to April. The hottest month is October, which is usually the height of the dry season. The average maximum temperature ranges from in July to in October. During the rainy season, daytime maxima are around . Nights are always cool, ranging from in July to in January. The city's average annual rainfall is , which supports a natural vegetation of open woodland, dominated by Combretum and Terminalia trees. Most rain falls in the December to February period, while June to August is usually rainless. Being close to the Kalahari Desert, Bulawayo is vulnerable to droughts and rainfall tends to vary sharply from one year to another. In 1978, of rain fell in the three months up to February (February 1944 is the wettest month on record with 368mm) while in the three months ending February 1983, only fell.


Water supply

Bulawayo has good-quality tap water owing to the management of the water authorities, meeting international standards. Bulawayo does not recycle waste water but uses treated waste water for irrigation. Bulawayo experiences water shortages in drought seasons due to the overwhelming increase in population versus the static and sometimes decreasing capacity of the reserve dams. The geographical factors causing water scarcity are rising temperatures, the area's high elevation and the arid environment of Matabeleland. Environmental and sanitation circumstances have detrimental effects on water quality. Sources such as groundwater and tap water are subject to pollution due to waste from burst sewers contaminating them. Samples taken from well water from the Pumula and Robert Sinyoka suburbs show that well water maintain levels of coliform higher than the Standards Association of Zimbabwe and World Health Organization give.


Sports

Bulawayo is home to the Queens Sports Club and Bulawayo Athletic Club, two of the three grounds in Zimbabwe where test match
cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
has been played. Bulawayo Golf Club, the first golf club in the city and country was established in 1895. The Matsheumhlope Stream cuts through the 18 hole course in the suburbs. It is home to Hartsfield Rugby grounds where many international Test matches have been played. Hartsfield was developed by Reg Hart, after whom the grounds were named and on which field many of southern Africa's greatest rugby players have competed. It is home to two large football teams: Highlanders and
Zimbabwe Saints Zimbabwe Saints FC is a former Premier League football club based in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. It is one of the top clubs in the country. History One of the oldest clubs in Zimbabwe, it was formed in 1931 out of several teams which had their origin ...
. Other football teams include
Bantu Rovers Bantu Tshintsha Guluva Rovers Football Club is a Zimbabwean football club based in Bulawayo since their recent purchase by a group of businessmen from that city. Prior to that the club was named Eastern Lions Football Club and based in Mutare, ...
,
Chicken Inn Chicken Inn is a Zimbabwean football club based in Bulawayo. They play in the top division of Zimbabwean football, the Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League. The team's unusual name comes from its major sponsor, a large Zimbabwean fast food retailer. ...
,
How Mine How may refer to: * How (greeting), a word used in some misrepresentations of Native American/First Nations speech * How, an interrogative word in English grammar Art and entertainment Literature * ''How'' (book), a 2007 book by Dov Seidma ...
, Quelaton, and Bulawayo City (R). Other important sporting and recreational facilities include * Barbourfields Stadium * Zimbabwe International Trade Fair Grounds *Kumalo Hockey Stadium *Ascot Racecourse * Khami Ruins *White City Stadium *Karate centres


Transport

The city has a total road network of about 2,100 kilometres; 70 percent was declared in 2017 in a poor condition. The R2 road links Bulawayo with the Capital Harare, and the Cape to Cairo Road links with the Gaborone and
Lusaka Lusaka (; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was ab ...
. The Bulawayo railway station is the central point of the railway line that connects the cities of
Lusaka Lusaka (; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zambia. It is one of the fastest-developing cities in southern Africa. Lusaka is in the southern part of the central plateau at an elevation of about . , the city's population was ab ...
and Gaborone (part of the Cape to Cairo Railway), as well as being the terminal of the Beira–Bulawayo railway, which connects with the cities of Gweru, Harare,
Mutare Mutare (formerly Umtali) is the most populous city in the province of Manicaland, and the third most populous city in Zimbabwe, having surpassed Gweru in the 2012 census, with an urban area, urban population of 224,802 and approximately 260,567 ...
and Beira. Through the station in the outskirts of Umzingwane, the city of Bulawayo is connected to the
Beitbridge Bulawayo Railway The Beitbridge Bulawayo Railway (BBR) is a privately owned railway company that provides a rail link in Zimbabwe between Beitbridge at the South African border and Zimbabwe's second city Bulawayo. The BBR is a build-operate-transfer project th ...
. On the 1 November 2013, a new terminal of Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport, formerly known as Bulawayo Airport, was opened.


Healthcare

Bulawayo is home to a large number of hospitals and other medical facilities. The United Bulawayo Hospitals, a public hospital network, operates
Bulawayo Central Hospital Bulawayo Central Hospital is a 600-bed health care institution located in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. The Government of Zimbabwe funds the hospital, this is supplemented by fees from patients. See also * List of hospitals in Zimbabwe There are 214 ...
, Richard Morris Hospital, Lady Rodwell Maternity Hospital, and Robbie Gibson Infectious Diseases Hospital. Mpilo Central Hospital, is the largest hospital in Bulawayo, and the second-largest in Zimbabwe, and features a
nursing school Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ca ...
and midwifery school on its campus. Bulawayo is also home to
Ingutsheni Hospital Ingutsheni Hospital is a health care institution located in Belmont east, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. It is the largest psychiatric hospital in Zimbabwe, with over 700 beds. History Ingutsheni is a government referral hospital located in the second la ...
, which at 700 beds is the largest psychiatric hospital in Zimbabwe. Other hospitals in Bulawayo include All Saints Children's Hospital, Hillside Hospital, Mater Dei Hospital, the Nervous Disorders Hospital, St Francis Hospital and Thorngrove Isolation Hospital.


Education

In Bulawayo, there are 128 primary and 48 secondary schools.


Primary schools


Secondary and high schools


Schools outside Bulawayo

* Falcon College – Esigodini *
Plumtree School Plumtree School is a boarding school for boys and girls in the Matabeleland region of Zimbabwe on the border with Botswana. Founded in 1902 by a railway mission, Plumtree School boards 500+ pupils. Recently the school announced it will start enrol ...
– Plumtree * Mzingwane High School - Esigodini * St. James Girls High School - Nyamandlovu *
Rhodes Estate Preparatory School Rhodes Estate Preparatory School (known informally as REPS or R.E.P.S) is an all-boys' private boarding preparatory school in Matopos, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe near the Matobo National Park. Founded in 1932, its completion was funded by the estate of ...
- Matopo * George Silundika High School - Nyamandlovu


Higher education

Bulawayo is home to a number of colleges and universities. The National University of Science and Technology, Zimbabwe, ( NUST), the second largest university in Zimbabwe, was established in Bulawayo in 1991.
Solusi University Solusi University is a coeducational private university in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Initially established in 1894, the institution received the authorization of the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe through an act of Parliament to operate as ...
, a Seventh-day Adventist institution established in Bulawayo in 1894, gained university status in 1994. The
Bulawayo Polytechnic College Bulawayo Polytechnic is an academic institution established in 1927 in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, ...
offers tertiary training for students who have completed GCE O Level and A Level education. It issues national certificates NC, Diplomas and higher national diplomas
HND HND or H&D may refer to: Transport * Haneda Airport, serving Tokyo, Japan * Hanborough railway station, in England * Henderson Executive Airport, in Nevada, United States * Hinterland Aviation, an Australian airline Other uses * Croatian Journ ...
certificates. Bulawayo has two specialist teacher training colleges : Hillside Teachers College for secondary education and the United College of Education for primary education. Bulawayo is home to a number of institutes of technology and vocational colleges, including Zimbabwe School of Mines, Westgate Industrial Training College, and the Zimbabwe Theological College. In addition companies such as the National Railways of Zimbabwe NRZ and Zimbabwe Electricity and Supply Authority ZESA offer apprenticeship training for qualifying students who then become certified artisans upon completion.


Media


Newspapers

''The Chronicle'', a
state-owned State ownership, also called government ownership and public ownership, is the ownership of an industry, asset, or enterprise by the state or a public body representing a community, as opposed to an individual or private party. Public ownersh ...
daily newspaper, and its Sunday edition, ''The Sunday News'', are published in Bulawayo. ''The Chronicle'' is the second-oldest newspaper in Zimbabwe, and along with ''The Herald'', published in Harare, it is one of two major state-owned newspapers in the country. ''UMthunywa'', a state-owned Ndebele-language newspaper, is also published in Bulawayo, where the majority of the population belongs to the Ndebele people. Private online publications like Bulawayo24 News and B-Metro are also based in Bulawayo.


Radio

The two radio stations, Skyz Metro FM, which is the first dedicated commercial radio station for the city and
Khulumani FM Khulumani FM, also known as KFM95.0 is a provincial radio station that broadcasts from the metropolitan province of Bulawayo in Matabeleland region. It was launched on March 2, 2018 to cater for the audiences in the province and surrounding areas w ...
, owned by the
Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) is the state-owned broadcaster in Zimbabwe. It was established as the Rhodesian Broadcasting Corporation (RBC), taking its current name in 1980. Like the RBC before it, the ZBC has been accused of bein ...
are based in the city and offer their programming mainly in English and Ndebele and other languages spoken in the Matabeleland region. The other 6 radio stations, in which only two of those are privately owned, are also accessible in the city via FM transmission.


Television

The state owned ZBC TV is the only free to air TV channel in the city. The majority of the households rely on the South African based satellite television distributor,
DStv Digital Satellite Television, commonly abbreviated to DStv, is a Sub-Saharan African direct broadcast satellite service owned by MultiChoice and based in Randburg, South Africa. Launched on 6 October 1995, the service provides multiple audio, ...
and
OVHD OpenView is a free-to-view direct broadcast satellite television provider in South Africa which is run by Platco Digital (part of the eMedia Group which includes free-to-air channel e.tv). It launched on 15 October 2013. In addition to the "e" ...
for better entertainment, news and sport across Africa and the world.


Internet

There are a number of internet service providers in the city. The majority of the population in the city access the internet through their mobile phones mainly for news, entertainment and communication.


Notable people


International relations

Bulawayo has six sister cities: * Aberdeen, Scotland (1986) * Durban, South Africa * Polokwane, South Africa (2012) * Katima Mulilo, Namibia * Francistown, Botswana * Livingstone, Zambia


See also

* List of cities and towns in Zimbabwe


References


Bibliography

{{Authority control Populated places established in the 1840s Populated places in Zimbabwe Provinces of Zimbabwe 1840s establishments in Africa