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Harare

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: African Geography

                    Harare, Zimbabwe
   Harare, Zimbabwe
   Harare, Zimbabwe
   Image:Zimbabwe Provinces Haprare 250px.png
   Map of Zimbabwe showing the location of Harare.
           Coordinates: 17°51′50″S, 31°1′47″E
       Province     Harare
         Area
        - City      km²
      Population
     - City (2006)  2,800,111
        - Urban     1,600,000
                    estimated
      Time zone     CET ( UTC+1)
    - Summer ( DST) CEST ( UTC+1)

   Harare ( pronounced /'hʌ ɹɑ' ɹi/, formerly Salisbury) is the capital
   city of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population 1,600,000, with
   2,800,000 in its metropolitan area (2006). It is Zimbabwe's largest
   city and its administrative, commercial, and communications centre. It
   is a trade centre for tobacco, maize, cotton, and citrus fruits.
   Manufactures include textiles, steel, and chemicals. Gold is mined in
   the area.. It is at an elevation of 4,865 feet (1,483 metres) and has a
   temperate climate.

   Despite the renaming of the city, some suburbs have retained their
   European names, such as Warren Park 'D', Borrowdale, Mount Pleasant,
   Tynwald and Avondale.

   Harare is famous for its beautiful jacaranda-lined streets, especially
   in the "Avenues" suburbs to the immediate north of the city centre.

   Harare is the site of the University of Zimbabwe, the largest and most
   complete institution of higher learning in Zimbabwe.
   Harare district
   Enlarge
   Harare district

History

   The city was founded in 1890 as a fort by the Pioneer Column, a
   mercenary force organized by Cecil Rhodes. The city was originally
   named Salisbury after the 3rd Marquess of Salisbury, then British prime
   minister. It became a city in 1935. Salisbury was the capital of the
   Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland from 1953 to 1963.

   The name of the city was changed to Harare on April 18th, 1982, the
   second anniversary of Zimbabwean independence, taking its name from the
   Shona chieftain Neharawa.

   In the early 21st century Harare has been adversely affected by the
   political and economic crisis that is currently plaguing Zimbabwe,
   after the contested 2002 Presidential election and 2005 parliamentary
   elections. The elected council was replaced by a government appointed
   commission for alleged inefficiency, but essential services such as
   rubbish collection and street repairs have rapidly worsened, and are
   now virtually non-existent. In May 2006 the Zimbabwean newspaper the
   Financial Gazette, described the city in an editorial as a "sunshine
   city-turned-sewage farm."

   In May 2005 the Zimbabwean government demolished shantytowns in Harare
   and the other cities in the country in Operation Murambatsvina
   (Operation "Drive Out Trash"). This caused a sharp reaction in the
   international community because it took place without prior warning and
   no advance plans were made to provide alternative housing. 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. This was followed by
   Operation Garikayi (Operation "Better Living") a year later which
   consisted of building inadequate concrete shacks with no electricity,
   plumbing or other infrastructure in inaccessible areas.

Sister Cities

     * United Kingdom Nottingham, UK
     * Germany Munich, Germany
     * United States Cincinnati, United States
     * United Kingdom Buxton, UK
     * Italy Prato, Italy
     * Italy Lago, Italy

Image Gallery

   Second street, view south

                            Anglican church

                                           Downtown Harare
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harare"
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   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
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