Matabeleland is a region located in southwestern Zimbabwe that is divided into three provinces: Matabeleland North, Bulawayo, and Matabeleland South. These provinces are in the west and south-west of Zimbabwe, between the Limpopo and Zambezi rivers and are further separated from Midlands by the Shangani River in central Zimbabwe. The region is named after its inhabitants, the Ndebele people who were called "Amatabele"(people with long spears – Mzilikazi 's group of people who were escaping the Mfecani wars). Other ethnic groups who inhabit parts of Matabeleland include the Tonga, Bakalanga, Venda, Nambya, Khoisan, Xhosa, Sotho, Tswana, and Tsonga. The population of Matabeleland is just over 20% of the Zimbabwe's total. The capital and largest city is Bulawayo, other notable towns are Plumtree, Victoria Falls, Beitbridge, Lupane, Esigodini, Hwange and Gwanda. The land is fertile but semi arid. This area has coal and gold deposits. Industries include gold and other mineral mines, and engineering. There has been a decline in the industries in this region as water is in short supply due to scarce rainfall. Promises by the government to draw water for the region through the Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project have not been carried out, continuing water shortages. History Lozvi Empire Around the 10th and 11th centuries, the Bantu-speaking Bakalanga/vakaranga arrived from the south and settled in Mapungubwe on the Limpopo and Shashi river valleys. Later they moved north to Great Zimbabwe. By the 15th century, the Bakalanga/vakaranga had established a strong empire at Khami under a powerful ruler called Dlembeu. This empire was split by the end of the 15th century and were later conquered by the Nguni people. Ndebele Kingdom In the late 1830s, Mzilikazi Khumalo, led a group of Nguni and other tribes into the Rozvi Empire of the Bakalanga. Many of the Bakalanga people were incorporated to create a large state called Ndebele Kingdom. Mzilikazi organised this ethnically diverse nation into a militaristic system of regimental towns and established his capital at Bulawayo ("the place of killing"). Mzilikazi was a statesman of considerable stature, able to weld the many conquered tribes into a strong, centralised kingdom. In 1840, Matabeleland was founded. In 1852, the Boer government in the Transvaal made a treaty with Mzilikazi. Gold was discovered in northern Ndebele in 1867. The area, settled by the Zezuru people, remnants of the Mwenemutapa kingdom, while the European powers increasingly became interested in the region. Mzilikazi died