Africa-Press – Tanzania. WATER Minister Jumaa Aweso has decried water authorities attributing losses of the precious liquid to leakages, noting that the problem was mainly due to poor billing system.
Mr Aweso issued a one-month ultimatum to the water authorities in the country to make verification of their clients to identify those with unbilled water meters and take necessary action.
“Some of the water authorities have been presenting high percentage of water losses which in actual sense are not real because we don’t see such leakages”, Mr Aweso said at the official opening of Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Authority (DAWASA) Annual General Meeting held in Dar es Salaam yesterday.
Mr Aweso noted that the huge loss of the precious liquid in the country is due to theft especially through unbilled consumption which is being done by some dishonest ministry officials.
“I am giving you 30 days to verify your clients because most of them who get the service don’t pay… such customers should be identified and registered in order to address this problem of water loss which is attributed to leakages,” he stressed.
Mr Aweso directed that within the given time, water authorities should also form a team of experts who will tour all areas with old infrastructure to address the problem of leakages.
He further revealed that his ministry is undertaking reforms to address various challenges facing the water sector including the use of prepaid water meters which will, among other things, address the leakage problem.
“We have invited various stakeholders with different technologies on water meters and we have identified priority areas where they can start to be used for the purpose of learning,” he noted.
He directed water authorities to ensure that the meters have met the required standards and they should be affordable.
The Minister further said that water authorities should come up with standard costs of connecting water services and ensure that people are provided with the service without delays.
He explained that the government has invested a lot of money in water projects in the country, thus authorities should come with standard costs for connecting water services so that many people could have access to the service.
He also warned against inflating water bills calling upon the authorities to ensure that their clients are involved in reading the bills.
He noted that in the 2021/22 budget President Samia Suluhu Hassan added 207bn/- to increase water access to the rural population especially in areas facing acute shortage of the precious liquid.
Mr Aweso noted that currently there is a huge project being implemented that will supply water to 1,527 villages in rural areas to reduce the scarcity.
The minister expressed his disappointment with some of the water engineers, who have failed to supervise the projects well, warning that stern measures will be taken against them.
“The government has invested a lot of money in these water projects but in some areas the implementation of the projects are not satisfactory,” he said.
DAWASA Chief Executive of Officer Cyprian Luhemeja said the water projects which have been implemented will help to solve water scarcity in the country’s commercial capital, Dar es Salaam.
DAWASA’s Board of DirectorsChairman, Gen (rtd) Davis Mwamunyange, said the implementation of the projects was part of initiatives to relieve women from long treks in searching for water.
“We commend the government for recognizing and appreciating the contribution made by DAWASA, including more than nine major projects which are in progress,” he said.
