THE increasing number of stray cattle and donkeys being killed daily on the Bulawayo-Gweru highway is a cause for concern. The Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe spent about US$500 000 on erecting a 162km fence on either side of the highway to prevent livestock from straying onto the highway but sections of the fence have been stolen.

What has worsened the situation is that even in sections where the fence is still intact, villagers are leaving the gates open resulting in cattle and donkeys straying onto the highway.

Police at Mbembesi Police Station have said thieves are cutting the fence at night and most of them are not locals.

Most sections of the highway no longer have the boundary fence and as such cattle and donkeys are straying onto the highway resulting in them being hit by vehicles. It is now common to see on this stretch of the highway two or more carcasses of cattle or donkeys hit mostly by heavy trucks at night.

Most of the cattle owners leave the carcasses to rot on the highway as they fear being prosecuted.

This section of the highway which was very safe for both livestock and motorists after the erection of the boundary fence, is now very dangerous especially at night because of stray livestock. There is, therefore, an urgent need to address the issue of stray livestock on the road.

The stolen fence should be replaced as soon as possible and villagers should ensure gates are closed all the time.

There might be a need to ask the local communities where the boundary fence was stolen to contribute towards the replacement of the fence so that they take the issue of community policing seriously.

It is the local communities that must assist police to arrest the fence thieves that are putting their livestock at risk of being killed by vehicles. The boundary fence is meant to protect both livestock and motorists.

Community leaders such as village heads and councillors should come up with a mechanism to force local communities to assist in policing their respective areas to protect the boundary fence from thieves.

Those that leave gates open should be punished because they are contributing to the upsurge in road accidents caused by stray livestock.

Many motorists are under the impression that there are no stray animals on this stretch of the highway only to find themselves driving into a herd of cattle or some donkeys.

The Bulawayo-Gweru highway is now the best in terms of navigability following the completion of the US$206 million refurbishment of the Plumtree-Mutare highway and what this means is that most motorists speed on this highway.

The stretch of the highway was prioritised by the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe under its project to fence off highways because it was recording high numbers of fatal accidents caused by stray livestock.

The situation is fast deteriorating to what it was before the erection of the fence hence the need to urgently replace the stolen fence and ensure gates are closed all the time.