Gweru (formerly Gwelo) is a city near the centre of Zimbabwe at 19°25′S, 29°50′E. It has a population of about 137,000 (2002), making it the third largest city in the nation. Gweru is the capital of Midlands province. Gweru was founded in 1894 by Dr. Leander Starr Jameson. It became a municipality in 1914 and achieved city status in 1971. The name changed from Gwelo to Gweru in 1982. For other uses, see Motto (disambiguation). ... Image File history File links Red_pog2. ... This is an alphabetical list of the sovereign states of the world, including both de jure and de facto independent states. ... Zimbabwe is divided into 8 provinces and 2 cities with provincial status: Bulawayo (city) Harare (city) Manicaland Mashonaland Central Mashonaland East Mashonaland West Masvingo Matabeleland North Matabeleland South Midlands Categories: | ... Midlands is a province of Zimbabwe. ... Timezone and TimeZone redirect here. ... Time zones of Europe: Light colours indicate countries that do not observe summer time Central European Time (CET) is one of the names of the time zone that is 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. ... Central European Time West Africa Time British Summer Time* Irish Summer Time* Western European Summer Time* Category: ... Although DST is common in Europe and North America, most of the worlds people do not use it. ... Time zones of Europe: Light colours indicate countries that do not observe summer time Central European Summer Time (CEST) is one of the names of UTC+2 time zone, 2 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. ... Central European Time West Africa Time British Summer Time* Irish Summer Time* Western European Summer Time* Category: ... Geographical renaming is the act of changing the name of a geographical feature or area. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... Midlands is a province of Zimbabwe. ... 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Sir Leander Starr Jameson, 1st Baronet, KCMG (February 9, 1853 – November 26, 1917), also known as Doctor Jim or The Doctor, was a British colonial statesman who was best known for his involvement in the Jameson Raid. ... Year 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar, known as the year of cyclohexanol. ...

It is also home to Thornhill Air Base, an airforce garrison, the Zimbabwe Military Museum and the Antelope Game Park. The Nalatale and Danangombe archaeological enclosures lie nearby, the first known for its patterned brickwork, the second for its Portuguese remains.

In 1928 Gweru resident and pioneer widow Mrs Jean Boggie erected a memorial clock tower in memory of her late husband. The Boggie Clock Tower has become a landmark in Gweru. Year 1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... A family of Russian settlers in the Caucasus region, ca. ... Clocktower at Geelong Grammar School, Victoria, Australia A clock tower is a tower built with one or more (often four) clock faces. ...

Industry

Industries include Zimbabwe Alloys, a chrome smelting plant, and Bata Shoe Company (established in 1939). Both are leading employers in Gweru. Gweru is situated in one of Zimbabwe's finest cattle rearing areas and surrounding agricultural activity revolves around the cattle industry (both beef and dairy). Bata have their own tanning plant for cattle hides and the Cold Storage Commission CSC have an abattoir in Gweru. Flowers are also grown in the area for the export market and Zimbabwe's largest distiller, Afdis, have extensive vineyards in Gweru for the production of wine. Mining is also prevalent, mainly chromite ore from rich deposits along the Great Dyke to the East of Gweru. Logo Bata Shoes (in Czech Baťa, also Baťovy závody) is a large, family owned shoe company. ... Year 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For general information about the genus, including other species of cattle, see Bos. ... This article is about making hides into leather. ... Workers and cattle in a slaughterhouse. ... Strathisla whisky distillery in Keith, Scotland Distillation is a method of separation of substances based on differences in their vapour pressures. ... A common vineyard. ... This article is about mineral extractions. ... Chromite, iron magnesium chromium oxide: (Fe,Mg)Cr2O4, is an oxide mineral belonging to the spinel group. ... --195. ...

Transportation

Railway

The National Railways of Zimbabwe have the country's largest marshalling yard, Dabuka, on the South side of Gweru. Dabuka plays a pivotal role in rail movement in the country as it is the central hub of the rail links to Mozambique in the East, South Africa in the South and Botswana and Namibia in the South West, lying on the Bulawayo - Harare Line. Zimbabwe Railway The National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) operates about 3,000 km of rail in Zimbabwe at the 1. ...

Road

As a central city (hub), it has direct links to all the other cities and the towns of Zimbabwe.

Roads linking Gweru

Road names used are by destination only, for example the Harare - Gweru Road. There are only mainroads, no highways or freeways.^[1]

Politics

Like other urban areas of Zimbabwe, the majority supports the MDC.

International relations

Gweru shares an international relationship with the town of Basildon, (Essex, United Kingdom).^[2] Basildon (IPA, ) is a New Town located in south Essex, England at . It was designated as a New Town after World War II in 1948 to accommodate the London population overspill. ... For other meanings of Essex, see Essex (disambiguation). ...

Population

The urban population of Gweru is thought to be around 300,000 people, but could well be more than that as most urban Zimbabweans maintain a rural home as well. Because it falls between the Shona and Ndebele regions a sizeable percentage can speak both of the major local languages although Shona is spoken by the majority with approximately 30% speaking Ndebele. Shona (IPA: ) is the name collectively given to several groups of people in Zimbabwe and western Mozambique. ... This article relates to the Ndebele people of Zimbabwe. ... ShonaThe word Shona is derived from the Ndebele word itshonalanga(where the sun set)(or ChiShona) is native language of Zimbabwe and southern Zambia; the term is also used to identify those Bantu-language speaking peoples in Southern Africa who speak one of the Shona languages(dialects) namely Zezuru,Karanga... The Northern Ndebele language, or isiNdebele, or Sindebele, is an African language belonging to the Nguni group of Bantu languages, and spoken by the Ndebele or Matabele people of Zimbabwe. ...

Residential areas

Like all other cities in Zimbabwe, Gweru is divided into high, medium and low density residential areas. During the apartheid era cities were also segregated according to race with the Black Africans living only in the high density areas. Coloureds (those of mixed heritage) lived in separate medium density area while the Whites (Europeans) occupied most of the medium and all of the low density areas. Although now racially integrated the dermacation between low, medium and high density still remain.

The biggest original "black" suburb in Gweru is Mkoba and is divided into sections. Mkoba started as a village so it still maintains village 1, village 2 up to village 26. It is the only suburban area in Zimbabwe to have the village suffix. Mtapa, Senga, Mambo are some of the high density suburbs around Gweru. Southdowns, Northlea, Lundi Park, Riverside etc are among the "middle class" residential areas of Gweru.

Harben park, St Annes drive, Kopje, Brackenhurst, Windsor Park are some of the "elite" residential areas of Gweru.

Education

The primary and secondary system of education has not changed much in structure for several decades. Schools in Gweru subscribe to the same British system of education as the rest of the nation. Students spend seven years in primary education and four (Ordinary Level) or six (Advanced Level) years in secondary depending on the level of education they choose to reach. Until the 1990s 'O' and 'A' level exams were administered by two major British examination bodies, i.e. Associated Examination Body (AEB) and Cambridge University. These are now being examined locally by the Zimbabwe Education Board. A primary school in Český Těšín, Poland Primary education is the first stage of compulsory education. ... Secondary education - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The University of Cambridge is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world, with one of the most selective sets of entry requirements in the United Kingdom. ...

Prior to 1980 schools were divided into two groups. Group A schools are the former all-white or mixed race schools and Group B schools are the former black schools. The difference lay mainly in the curriculum and facilities available. Group A schools generally had more facilities, particularly in the non-core teaching areas such as art, music and sport. Of particular emphasis is the sporting area in which former Group B schools taught mainly athletics, football and netball whilst the Group A schools had a wider range of sporting activities including athletics, tennis, swimming, diving, gymnastics, hockey, rugby, cricket, netball, basketball and cross-country. There has not been much change in this provision since independence. For a curriculum vitae, see Résumé. In formal education, a curriculum (plural curricula) is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. ...

Nursery Schools

• Mimosa Nursey School
• Dominican Nursery School
• Gweru Nursery School
• Midlands Pre-School

Primary Schools

Group A Child picking up book. ... A primary school in Český Těšín, Czech Republic. ...

• Cecil John Rhodes School
• Stanley School
• Riverside School
• Lundi Park School
• Midlands Christian School (Private)
• Anderson Adventist (Private)

Group B

• Bata School (Financed and Maintained by the Bata Shoe Company)
• Sandara School
• St Pauls School (Catholic)
• Chikumbiro School
• Bumburwi School
• Mambo School
• Senga School
• Matongo Primary School]
• Takwirira
• Thornhill Airforce

Secondary Schools

Group A St Pauls School is/was the name of many schools, most with a religious heritage and named after the Apostle Paul of Tarsus. ... Secondary school is a term used to describe an institution where the final stage of compulsory schooling, known as secondary education, takes place. ...

• Thornhill High School
• Chaplin High School (former school of Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Douglas Smith)
• Midlands Christian College (private)
• Anderson Adventist High School (private)
• Nashville Secondary School

Group B The Rt Hon Ian Smith, Prime Minister of Rhodesia, 1964 (official portrait) Ian Douglas Smith GCLM ID (born 8 April 1919) was the Premier of the British Crown Colony of Southern Rhodesia from 13 April 1964 to 11 November 1965, and Prime Minister of Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) from 11 November... Midlands Christian College (MCC) is a co-educational high school of about 450 pupils located in the city of Gweru, Zimbabwe. ...

• Mambo Secondary School
• Fletcher High School (this school produced some of the country's top professionals)
• Tertiary Schools
• Gweru Polytechnic College
• Mkoba Teachers College
• Midlands State University

Church/Mission Schools Midlands State University is a university in Zimbabwe offering different courses mainly in the commercial and arts sector. ...

• Loreto Secondary School (Catholic)
• Lower Gwelo High School (Seventh Day Adventist)

Commercial Colleges

Commercial education was not easily available to the majority of Gweru residents especially before independence. There was a surge of new colleges after 1980 when Zimbabwe gained independence and also when commercial courses became a popular requirement in industry.

Midlands College of Commerce - The first black commercial college was founded in the early 1970s by Wilbert H. Shumba. It provided courses in most commercial and practical subjects popular during that era for example, typing, bookkeeping, dress-making and shorthand. These were examined by the UK-based Pitman examination institute. This college stopped operating in the mid-1990s following the death of W.H Shumba in 1994.

After 1980 other colleges were soon established:

• Educare College
• Ambassador College
• Commercial Studies Centre
• Solars College
• TopFlight Secretarial College

Correspondence / Distance Education Colleges

• Zimbabwe Distance Education College (Zideco). Founded by Dr Skhanyiso Ndlovu who is now the Minister of Information for Zimbabwe. ZIDECO was formed soon after independence and is now one of the country's largest adult education colleges. This college runs commercial and academic programmes including ZJC (Zimbabwe Junior Certificate), 'O' and 'A' levels and degree programmes
• Central Africa Correspondence College established in 1954
• Rapid Results College established in 1962
• International Correspondence Schools
• Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU)

Tertiary Education

• Midlands Christian Training Centre - provided Teacher Training, and is also an examination centre for UNISA exams. This training centre is closely linked to Midlands Christian School and College.

Hotels

The Midlands Hotel was opened in 1927 by the Meikles brothers. It was about to demolished but after much protest, it was spared. Chitukuko hotel (formerly known as the Cecil Hotel) is another local hotel located in the city centre area. Both hotels are now owned by Patrick Kombayi, a prominent Gweru business, ex-mayor, and politician known for his highly publicised criticism of the current government. Fairmile Motel is just a mile from the city centre on Bulawayo road. Year 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Meikles Hotel logo Meikles is the popular name given to Meikles Hotel in central Harare, Zimbabwe, Meikles department stores in Zimbabwe and Meikles Africa Limited, the company which owns both the hotel, the department stores and Meikles TM Supermarket chain and other retail outlets. ... The City of Bulawayo is highlighted in this map of Zimbabwe. ...

References

1. ^ The Automobile Association of Zimbabwe
2. ^ Local Government International Bureau (LGIB) Database of "Twinning Towns"

2. Munyaradzi B. Munochiveyi, "An Economic History of Industrialization in Zimbabwe: The Case of Gwelo Town, 1890-1979", B.A. (Honours) Thesis, University of Zimbabwe, 2001.

External links

• Gweru city web site
• Midlands State University web site
• Street map of colonial-era Gweru