Inquiry into RIDA Mbuya Nehanda ferry disaster that killed 97 begins
The inquiry into the RIDA Mbuya Nehanda ferry disaster, which claimed 97 lives when the vessel capsized on Lake Kariba on 11 August 2026, has commenced.
The accident happened at about 1 pm on 11 August.
Transport and Infrastructural Development Minister Felix Mhona appointed a three-member board of inquiry through a Government Gazette published in terms of the Inland Waters Shipping Act. He met the board at his offices in Harare on Monday, 12 October 2026.
The board is led by Supreme Court Judge Joseph Mafusire and includes the Officer Commanding Police for Mashonaland East Province, Wiklef Makamache, and Advocate Patronella Musarurwa. Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Joy Makumbe, will serve as secretary.
The inquiry will be conducted in Kariba and is expected to run for up to three months, with a possible one-month extension.
It will focus on how the vessel was loaded, operated and cleared to sail, including its seaworthiness, passenger and cargo capacity, crew competence, safety compliance and the actions of the authorities responsible for regulating inland water transport.
Mhona said preliminary investigations had shown that the capsizing led to injuries and deaths, but the findings so far were not adequate to bring closure.
He said inland water shipping and navigation are administered by the Ministry through the Inland Waters Shipping Act [Chapter 13:06] and, given the gravity of the incident, it was appropriate and obligatory to establish the board.
He said it was in line with international standards and recommended practices prescribed by the International Maritime Organisation to institute an inquiry where such casualties occur.
Mhona said the findings will be used to shape future policy, legal and operational frameworks for inland water transport, to inform safety strategies and provide lessons to avoid a recurrence, to bring closure to relatives of the deceased and to guide future programmes of remembrance and commemoration for the victims. *_-Pindula_*
