AT least 313km of the Harare-Beitbridge highway have so far been rehabilitated as the Government's robust infrastructure development drive continues bearing fruit.

The Government is widening, reconstructing and rehabilitating the highway.

The 313 kilometres of the highway have since been opened to traffic.

The multi-million dollar Harare-Beitbridge Highway rehabilitation project is progressing well as contractors are on the ground to ensure that set targets are met.

Recently, Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development, Felix Mhona said he was confident that the target of the more than 300 kilometres will be achieved by the end of the year.

The rehabilitation of the Harare-Beitbridge highway is one of the major projects that the Second Republic is undertaking with five local firms having been contracted.

Posting on its twitter handle, the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development confirmed the developments on the Harare-Masvingo-Beitbridge highway road-update.

The ministry said the kilometres opened to traffic being done by the contractors which are Bitumen World had completed 71,3km, Fossil 70.18km, Masimba 61km, Tensor 54km and Exodus 50km while the Department of Roads (DoR) had completed 7,2km making it a total of 313.68km

Last week, the visiting Zambian Parliamentary Committee on Transport, Works and Supply got an appreciation of the scope of Zimbabwe's road rehabilitation programme in the Beatrice area.

"We are satisfied with the quality of the roads that we have seen here," said Engineer Jarawani Kangara, the Acting Director, Roads Construction and Maintenance with the Ministry of Transport and infrastructure Development.

Engineer Kangara said most of the contactors are ahead of schedule and is confident that they will meet the target of opening 500 kilometres by the end of the year.

"We have opened three hundred and thirteen kilometres. We are satisfied with the work because all our contractors are ahead of schedule. Despite the rains that affected some of our works we are on track."

One of the contractors, Tensor, is now working on dualising a five-kilometre stretch of the road which is expected to be complete by next month.

Chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructure Development, Oscar Gorerino said he was satisfied with the road rehabilitation programme.

"We are satisfied as a committee. This is government walking the talk and I am happy that our visitors have commended us and asked for our concept paper so that they can implement it in Zambia," he said.

The Harare-Beitbridge highway is one of the busiest national highways, with the upgrade set to ensure smooth flow of traffic, while also having multiplier effects on the country's economy towards an upper middle-income society by 2030.