UDCORP Completes Rigorous, Profitable Transformation Strategy

UDCORP returns to profitability and accelerates housing delivery with 3,000 serviced stands at Knockmallock, while stakeholders call for transparency and stronger infrastructure support (image source)

UDCORP, the state-owned Urban Development Corporation, has completed a sweeping transformation strategy that has restored the parastatal to profitability and strengthened its role in national housing delivery. Officials confirmed the milestone during a stakeholder tour of the Knockmallock Mixed Housing Project in Chegutu last Friday, where participants examined progress on the ground and engaged UDCORP executives on timelines, pricing and beneficiary selection. Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe, speaking through Chief Director Shingirayi Mushamba, said the corporation is now “strategically positioned to play a leading role” in the government’s housing initiatives.

The Knockmallock development is being established as a mixed-density, self-contained township comprising residential stands, commercial plots, a light industrial zone and institutional land earmarked for schools, churches and a cemetery. The project is a partnership between UDCORP and the Chegutu Rural District Council. UDCORP Chief Executive Joey Shumbamhini said the corporation’s first priority was to “put our house in order” by clearing backlogs in audited financials, strengthening governance and reviving stalled projects. The scheme, he said, is designed to cater for low-income earners, the middle class and higher-income buyers.

Government briefings indicate that more than 3,000 serviced stands at Knockmallock are nearing readiness. Officials framed this progress as part of a wider national push that has already contributed significantly to the revised one-million-housing target under the National Development Strategy 1. The government’s pledge to allocate additional land to UDCORP was described as a practical step to accelerate delivery, with authorities emphasising that state land allocations help reduce construction costs and improve affordability for first-time buyers.

Analysts, while welcoming UDCORP’s turnaround, cautioned that land allocations alone will not guarantee affordability or timely completion. Developers and financiers present during the tour highlighted key requirements, including predictable access to foreign exchange, transparent tender processes, clear local-content guidelines and timely servicing of water, sewer and road infrastructure. Local contractors also stressed the need for binding commitments on employment of local labour and support for domestic suppliers to ensure that the project creates jobs within Chegutu rather than relying heavily on imported materials and external contractors.

UDCORP’s management said its transformation strategy focused on governance reform, debt clearance and commercial discipline—foundations that have restored confidence among partners and enabled the corporation to relaunch previously stalled initiatives. As stakeholders await the next project milestones, the corporation’s turnaround is being closely watched as a model of state-enterprise reform and a potential catalyst for expanded urban development nationwide.