Africa-Press – Botswana. Gaborone City mayor has expressed concern that the P340.6 million owed to Water Utilities Corporation (WUC) by Gaborone service area customers affects its operations.
Government institutions owe P25 million while P75.2 million is accrued debt by businesses and commercial plots, with individual customers owing P210.4 million.
Mayor Austin Abraham expressed the concern in his speech at the full council meeting on Monday.
The Mayor said WUC continued to disconnect its customers for non-payment to recover the huge debt.
In addition, he said WUC had engaged external debt collectors to address the situation.
In other issues, the Mayor said WUC was experiencing an increase in the number of vandalism cases, especially on its major infrastructure by truck owners who sold garden water within the city.
“Although water supply for Gaborone City is consistent and reliable, Water Utilities Corporation is experiencing an increase in vandalism,” he said.
Mr Abraham said vandalism of infrastructure often resulted in unplanned water supply interruptions and high cost of maintenance for the corporation.
He said the existing water infrastructure in the eastern side of the railway line had surpassed its design life, making it prone to pipe bursts.
The mayor further said to address the problem, the corporation was implementing two projects, one project to address pressure management, which was aimed at installing pressure regulation valve at strategic locations.
He said the project would manage water pressure during peak water demand.
Mr Abraham said the other project was water leak detention project, which used satellite imaging to predict water leaks.
He further said the project was expected to improve WUC reaction to water leaks, hence improving the response time.
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