{"id":3599,"date":"2014-06-20T14:38:47","date_gmt":"2014-06-20T14:38:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/afrifacto.com\/zimbabwe\/?page_id=3599"},"modified":"2014-06-20T15:03:38","modified_gmt":"2014-06-20T15:03:38","slug":"harare-city","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/afrifacto.com\/zimbabwe\/harare-city\/","title":{"rendered":"Harare City"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Harare is the capital city of Zimbabwe. It is also the largest city in the country at a size of 960.6 square kilometers. Its population estimate last measured in 2009 reported 1.606 million inhabitants living in its capital. It is located at 17o<\/sup>51\u201950\u2019\u2019S, 31o<\/sup>1\u201947\u2019\u2019E. It is a high lying plateau, above the sweltering river lowlands of the Zambezi in the north and the Limpopo River in the south.<\/p>\n

\u00a0History of Harare<\/strong><\/p>\n

Harare was founded in 1890 as a fort by the Pioneer column, a mercenary force organized by Cecil Rhodes. Originally, the city was named Salisbury after the 3rd<\/sup>Marquess of Salisbury, then British prime minister. Salisbury was the capital of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland from 1953 to 1963.<\/p>\n

After World War II, the population grew as many people migrated to the city. Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980 and during the second anniversary of Zimbabwean independence (April 18th<\/sup>, 1982) the city\u2019s name was changed to Harare, the Shona chieftain Neharawa. The city borrows its name from the first Shona inhabitants of the marshy flats near the Kopje (inselberg) on which it stands today who were called Ne-Harawa after the regional chief \u2013 Haarare (one who does not sleep).<\/p>\n

Harare has been adversely affected by the political and economic crisis that is currently plaguing Zimbabwe. Zimbabwean government demolished shantytowns in Harare and the other cities in the country in Operation Murambatsvina in May 2005. This led to a sharp reaction in the international community because it took place without prior warning and no advance plans were made to provide alternative housing.<\/p>\n

It was widely alleged that the true purpose of the campaign was to punish the urban poor for supporting the opposition Movement for Democratic Change and to reduce the likelihood of mass action against the government by driving people out of the cities. The government claimed it was necessitated by a rise of criminality and disease.<\/p>\n

The city is a mosaic of high-rise office blocks and well-preserved, historic buildings.\u00a0 Harare is best known for its numerous and extensive gardens. The world renowned Shona sculptures are a major attraction. The city offers soccer, the most popular sport, horse racing, tennis, and rugby and water sports.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Population<\/strong><\/p>\n

Harare City covers an area of 960.6 km\u00b2with an estimated population of 1.56 million people as of 2014.<\/p>\n

Governance of Harare.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The legislative authority of the government of Harare is vested in the City Council which follows the countries\u2019 parliamentary democracy.<\/p>\n

Mayors of Cairo City<\/strong><\/p>\n