Chimanimani District (part of which was known as Melsetter 1895–1982) is a mountainous district in

Manicaland Province Manicaland is a province in eastern Zimbabwe. After Harare Province, it is the country's second-most populous province, with a population of 2.037 million, as of the 2022 census. After Harare and Bulawayo provinces, it is Zimbabwe's third-most de ...

of eastern

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

. The district headquarters is the town of Chimanimani.

Geography

The district has an area of 3,450.14 km². It is bounded on the east by

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

, on the north and northwest by

Mutare District Mutare District is a district in Manicaland Province of eastern Zimbabwe. The district headquarters is the city of Mutare. Geography The district has a rural area of 5,523 km², and an urban area of 191 km². It is bounded on the east ...

, on the west by Buhera District, and on the south by Chipinge District. The

Chimanimani Mountains The Chimanimani Mountains are a mountain range on the border of Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The mountains are in the southern portion of the Eastern Highlands, or Manica Highlands, a belt of highlands that extend north and south along the internatio ...

extend through the eastern part of the district, stretching for some 50 km (31 mi) and forming the border with Mozambique. The mountains are distinguished by large peaks, carved from a rifted quartzite massif. The highest peak is

Monte Binga Monte Binga is the highest mountain in Mozambique and the second highest mountain in Zimbabwe. It is located in the Chimanimani Mountains, on the border between Zimbabwe and Mozambique in the Chimanimani Transfrontier Park in Manica Province. I ...

at 2,436 m (8,005 ft). Chimanimani National Park (171.1 km²) protects the Zimbabwean portion of the range. The Haroni River runs from north to south in a steep-sided valley west of the Chimanimani massif. It joins the Rusitu River in the southwest corner of the district, which then flows east into Mozambique to join the Buzi River. The village of Chimanimani lies west of the Haroni. Lower mountains run north and south through the center of the district. The western portion of the district lies in the valley of the Save River and its tributary the

Odzi Odzi is a village in Manicaland Province, Zimbabwe located 32 km west of Mutare just off the main Harare-Mutare road. Odzi was established as a railway siding in 1899. It serves as a small trading centre in a tobacco and mix farming region. ...

, which form the district's western boundary.

People

The population of the district was 134,939 in the 2012 census. The district's population is 94% rural.

Administration

The district is divided into 23 administrative wards. The administrative headquarters are in the town of Chimanimani. The district is divided into two

Assembly Assembly may refer to: Organisations and meetings * Deliberative assembly, a gathering of members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions * General assembly, an official meeting of the members of an organization or of their representa ...

parliamentary constituencies An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...

, Chimanimani East and Chimanimani West. Chimanimani Senate constituency includes the entire district together with Mutare South and

Mutare West Mutare West is a constituency represented in the National Assembly of the Parliament of Zimbabwe, located in Manicaland Province. Its current MP since the 2023 general election is Nyasha Marange of ZANU–PF. Electoral history The candidate o ...

Transport

The district has three tarred roads. The main road between Mutare and

Masvingo Masvingo is a city in south-eastern Zimbabwe and the capital of Masvingo Province. The city is situated close to Great Zimbabwe, the national monument from which the country takes its name and close to Lake Mutirikwi, its recreational park, ...

(P4, formerly A9) passes through the western edge of the district. The A10 road branches off the P4 in Wengezi in the district's northwestern corner, and runs north and south through the center of the district. A branch road connects Chimanimani town to the A10. A road branches eastwards from the northern portion of the A10, extending through Cashel to border post with Mozambique.

History

Cyclone Idai Intense Tropical Cyclone Idai () was one of the worst tropical cyclones on record to affect Africa and the Southern Hemisphere. The long-lived storm caused catastrophic damage, and a humanitarian crisis in Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Malawi, lea ...

struck the district on 15 March 2019, bringing high winds and torrential rains that caused extensive flooding. The cyclone caused at least 169 deaths in the district, and extensive damage to crops, houses, and roads.

Chimanimani Mountains

Much of the range is composed of quartzite ridges, with

(2,436m) the highest peak in the range and second-highest peak in Zimbabwe. The mountains are home to montane woodlands and grasslands, highland tropical forests, and high-elevation grasslands and heathlands. The Chimanimani Mountains are protected by Chimanimani National Park, and are one of Zimbabwe's finest mountain wilderness areas and a popular hiking destination. Scenic Bridal Veil Falls are within the national park, close to the town of Chimanimani. During the Zimbabwe independence war, mountain passes in the Chimanimani area were frequently used by guerilla fighters between Zimbabwe and their camps in

, who laid mines along local roads to disrupt the local economy. Because of this, the passes were heavily mined by

Rhodesian Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

government forces. Land mines have continued to be a real hazard in the area, particularly after heavy rain.

Chimanimani town

The town of Chimanimani was founded by Thomas Moodie in 1892 and in 1895 it was moved to its current site and was officially called Melsetter after Moodie's family home in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. The name was changed in 1982, after Zimbabwean independence (1980). The name initially was made Mandidzudzure, but after consultation with local residents, this was changed again to the current one. According to the 1982 Population Census, the town has a population of 1,370. The town had a tourist office, a bank, grocery, curio shops and the faded colonial Chimanimani Arms Hotel. In 1995 it also had a travellers' hostel called Heaven, with a

permaculture Permaculture is an approach to land management and settlement design that adopts arrangements observed in flourishing natural ecosystems. It includes a set of design principles derived using whole-systems thinking. It applies these principle ...

smallholding A smallholding or smallholder is a small farm operating under a small-scale agriculture model. Definitions vary widely for what constitutes a smallholder or small-scale farm, including factors such as size, food production technique or technology ...

which was a popular source of employment in the village. Frog & Fern Cottages on the way to Bridal Veil Falls provide self-catering cottages within walking distance of the town. The Chimanimani Arts Festival was a free music festival that began in 1998, and was held in August of each year. It was discontinued during Zimbabwe's post-2013 political crisis."Chimanimani Arts Festival". Music in Africa, 7 July 2015. Accessed 10 April 2020

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Gallery

Image:Chimanimani, Zimbabwe1.jpg, View of the National Park area from behind Chimanimani village stores Image:ZimBridalVeiFallsJM.jpg, Bridal Veil Falls in the hills above Chimanimani village

References

Resources

* Childhood of a white country doctor's son in the Chimanimani area in the 1960s, and beginnings of the Second Chimurenga (civil war).

External links

Chimanimani Rural District Council (official site)Chimanimani National Park (official site)Chimanimani tourism
{{Geography of Zimbabwe Districts of Manicaland Province