The Harare City Council is facing challenges with salary arrears as of early September 2025. The mayor, Councillor Jacob Mafume, has publicly acknowledged the issue and called for coordinated efforts with the human resources department to address outstanding salary payments to council employees. The council has reportedly paid some components of the July salaries but is still working to clear other payments depending on available funds. Mafume emphasized prioritizing payments to lower-grade staff and addressing urgent concerns like school fees, acknowledging that the workforce performs life-threatening work and should not be expected to continue without proper compensation.
The council is also implementing revenue-boosting measures, including a blitz operation targeting commercial debtors and enforcing compliance on rented properties to improve finances and ultimately meet its salary obligations. However, the salary arrears situation underscores ongoing financial constraints faced by the council. Efforts to manage costs include canceling some employee workshops while focusing on revenue collection improvements.
In summary, the Harare City Council has been struggling but is actively working towards resolving salary payment delays, though payment is still not fully up to date as of early September 2025.
