Africa-Press – Angola. The accumulated debt of customers of public water and sanitation companies in the provinces of Lunda Sul, Lunda Norte and Moxico (East of the country) reaches AOA 850 million, the managers informed.
This situation, according to company managers who spoke on the sidelines of the regional workshop on water, is hindering the implementation of new projects and the continuous improvement of the provision of water distribution services.
According to those responsible, the range of debtors made up of public, private and private companies or families.
Lunda Sul
In Lunda Sul province, customers of Public Water and Sanitation Companies (EPAS) accumulate a debt of around 220 million Kwanzas and the biggest debtors are public institutions, followed by private ones and individual customers/families.
According to the chairman of the Board of Directors of EPAS, Agostinho Piedade, the debts incurred by customers have created constraints in the execution of new projects and in the completion of various actions of the company.
For this reason, he appealed to customers to pay their debts in order to avoid cuts in the water supply.
For the payment of debts, he informed that the company will reinforce awareness campaigns in the media, urging debtors to pay their debts, in order to avoid cuts.
On the other hand, the official said that soon the “Mwono Waha” neighborhood will have an independent water system, with the capacity to pump more than two thousand cubic meters of water per day and allow 600 home connections to be made, as well as to collect more revenue. to company coffers.
He informed that EPAS has been developing a project to install meters, since the beginning in June of the current year, and more than 18 thousand 50 meters have already been installed.
He explained that the city of Saurimo has 7,200 home connections, and a water collection, treatment and distribution center, with 200 cubic meters, which serves more than 200,000 inhabitants out of the existing 534,231.
Lunda Norte
On his turn, the chairman of the Board of Directors of the Public Company of Water and Sanitation (EPAS) in Lunda Norte, André Camilo, said that the financial situation of the institution depends a lot on its activity, that is, distribution and collection.
“A lot of work is needed to improve the financial indicators, for this. The beneficiaries have the right to consume the water, but they also have the duty to pay for the sustainability of the management company”, underlined the PCA.
He said that EPAS customers in Lunda Norte owe around 600 million kwanzas, where the biggest debtors are public and private companies and individual customers.
Lunda Norte controls 22,000 consumers, a figure that could increase with the new home connections currently underway in the city of Dundo.
He stated that Lunda Norte has a large water project that foresees 15,000 household connections. The project is running in the city of Dundo.
With regard to municipalities that still do not have water supply systems, such as Cuango, Caungula, Capenda-Camulemba and Cambulo, he said that the government has several projects in its portfolio aimed at meeting these needs.
“ The technical teams have already carried out the survey and we are only waiting for the funding for the projects to start.
moxico
Regarding customer debt, the PCA of EPAS in Moxico, Eurico Jorge, said that it is oscillating, since at the moment management software has been implemented, and all customers are being registered in the system to calculate the actual debt. , but stressed that the value of the last few months, just for the institutions, is around 30 million kwanzas.
To eliminate debts, said the manager, the institution has carried out awareness campaigns with public and private institutions, to pay the debts.
Eurico Jorge, on the other hand, said that the institution is on the right path, benefiting from support from the Regulatory Institute of Electricity and Water Services (IRSEA), instructing service and billing models.
EPAS has 7,400 home connections, which benefit around 100,000 inhabitants of the city of Luena, and, at this stage, as part of the expansion of the network, a further 15,000 connections are in progress and a coverage of 66 per percent of the population – that is, benefiting seven peripheral districts of the city.
The company controls 12,000 active customers, a number that tends to grow with the completion of expansion works to 22,000 home connections.
The forum on water, lasting two days, takes place under the motto “Sustainability of management entities, challenges and perspectives”. At the event, participants are addressing topics such as “The importance of IRSEA in regulating the sector” and “Economic, financial and commercial situation and future perspectives of management entities”.
The “Proposals for water payment tariffs”, “The impact of technical and commercial losses on company management”, and the “Importance of information in the regulation of the sector” are other topics under analysis.
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