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Fortious Nhambura Senior Features Writer
Three of Zimbabwe’s major cities have mulled plans to install prepaid water meters for consumers in their areas of jurisdiction. Harare, Bulawayo and Mutare say migration was inevitable and would be implemented in the next few months. The move will see residents paying for water before they actually use it like they do with electricity and mobile phones talk time.

The development has been received with suspicion by residents associations who feel this is meant to deny poor residents access to the precious commodity.

The associations also argue the new move is in contravention of the country’s Constitution and other international conventions that prohibit the commercialisation of water.

On Thursday last week the associations teamed up to express their anger at the council’s decision disrupting a Harare City Council full meeting. They vowed to block the move to switch to prepaid water metering.

Council has vowed to move ahead with its plans saying it is meant to plug leakages, avoid non-payment for service and abuse of water by residents and council officials.

But residents say the introduction of prepaid water in Zimbabwe remains a challenge as it will sink poor households into to poverty as many may not be able to pay cash upfront for services.

With the bulk of residents already struggling to pay for essential services many will be relegated from the supply chain forcing them to use unsafe water sources.

Harare Residents Trust director Mr Precious Shumba said the Government must listen to the people and not some greedy officials who were bent on ripping off the public.

He said prepaid water metering would simply force the bulk of residents to resort to shallow well and boreholes for domestic use.

“Given the country’s economic situation, the priority was supposed to be plugging all leakages along the distribution network and tighten monitoring of water billing, connections and quantity of water generated. This is only going to condemn more people to use shallow wells and unsafe water sources.

“The HRT does not support the system, and has no wish to even use other jurisdictions as justifications for the introductions of prepaid water meters in Zimbabwe, and in Harare particularly,” he said.

Mr Marlon Makamure of Dzivaresekwa said in spite of the little rains that the city received this year, cases of diarrhoeal diseases had been on the increase in the past few months and a sign that residents are not assessing clean water.

Statistics show that 11 000 people were diagonised of the water-borne disease in the past three months.

“The current situation should never be compounded by pushing water accessibility beyond the reach of the poor. I am sure the introduction of prepaid water meters would increase the number of people with no access to potable water and efficient sewerage systems.

“The situation is already bad and does not need some of the measures that the authorities at Town House are taking. Policies should not be based on other cities elsewhere but on weighting the practicalities of introducing such move on the residents,” said Makamure.

Mabvuku resident Ms Netty Madzana said problems of water shortages and low revenues in council were a result of mismanagement, corruption and incompetence and smart water meters are not the solution.

“There are a number of Government directives that are being ignored by council that have made improvement of water supply a pipe dream for residents. For instance, there was the recent directive calling all public service sector managers to have their salaries pegged at $6 000 that has been totally ignored.

“The Urban Councils Act stipulates no more than 30 percent of revenue should be allocated to salaries but for instance in Harare, the wage bill accounts for almost 80 percent of revenue with the council chefs greedily allocating themselves the bulk of that,” she complained.

Evidence of massive corruption that has been unearthed in the China Exim Bank loan has been swept under the carpet.

“As such these smart meters will not solve the city’s water problems and neither will they solve the council’s cash flow problems. They will only fill the chefs feeding trough,’ she said

Ms Madzana said sanity should be restored so that council returns to its core business of service provision and not buying the latest posh vehicles for non-performing directors.

Another resident said the figures of people dying or being diagnosed of diarrhoeal diseases in Harare was clear testimony of the need to improve clean water supplies in Harare’s suburbs.

Mr Shumba said there was no immediate benefit for residents with the prepaid water system.

He said while it would rake in millions of dollars the money was likely to be abused through payment of outrageous salaries and allowances for senior managers, and the administrative costs of the municipality.

Very little is expected to be ploughed into the upgrading and improvement of water delivery, according to Mr Shumba.

The HRT director said instead council should concentrate on repairing worn out pipes that account for nearly 30 percent loss of treated water in the city than punish residents who have faithfully paid for the service despite the harsh economic climate.

“An additional 30 percent is being lost to illegal connections and other theft actions. This means of the total treated water produced for Harare about 60 percent being pumped is not generating any revenue to the council. Only 40 percent of pumped water is being billed. That shows poor water distribution management,” he said.

The city should be aiming at regaining lost trust in the municipal water that has seen residents resorting to boreholes, shallow wells and private water sellers as viable alternatives.

According to Environment Design and Planning expert Dr Sasha Jogi provision of water in urban community is a function of the city.

He said programmes should be instituted so that all investors into the water sector and residents benefit as the two are mutually related.

Some residents, however, welcomed the move.

They said this would mean they pay for only what they use. Gone would be the days of being charged for a commodity that they were not getting. This, residents said, would also teach them to manage water efficiently and hence increase city’s capacity to supply to residents.

Mrs Susan Nzombe of Highfield said prepaid meters would help in conserving water.

“I have seen people ignoring the ban on use of hosepipe because they know the water bill will be same at the end of month. This is because it is always an estimate of water consumption rather than a true reading. Some never pay and simply work with corrupt city officials to continue using water.

“This culture of not paying for services must be put to an end if Zimbabwe is to develop,” she said.

Mr Phato Sithole of Hatfield said he hoped authorities had done enough research to ensure that these prepaid meters worked to everyone’s advantage, not just council.

“What needs to be done really is that the other fixed charges must then be a percentage of the usage.

“For instance, where I live we hardly ever have water supplies. I hope the smart meter will put an end to the monthly estimates. I will only get to pay as and when I have received supplies,” he said.

He said the introduction of water meters must be synchronised with availability of water in all areas.

Harare spokesperson Michael Chideme, however, defended the prepaid system saying it would bring back sanity to water billing.

“Prepaid water meters will actually help consumers in ensuring that they will only pay for what they use. It will help them in conserving water and ensuring that leakages are attended to and reported in time. In fact through the new system leaks will be detected faster and remedial action taken.

“Above all consumers can buy water to suit their pocket. The new system helps to curb theft of treated water and in accounting. The revenue realised will be ploughed back into water provision and maintenance of water facilities.

The prepaid system will indeed boost revenue on the water account, money that will be used to continuously upgrade and improve water supply in the city to meet rising demand.

A method should, however, be put in place to ensure even the poor get the precious liquid otherwise it would condemn a number of residents to unclean and unsafe water sources.

A way should be devised to ensure that poor residents get water otherwise it will increase the disease burden on both council and central Government.

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