While all the country’s water authorities collect an average of 54bn/- per year, the figure reportedly accounts for just 62 per cent of the targeted revenue collection.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Water and Irrigation, Eng Bashir Mrindoko
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Water and Irrigation, Eng Bashir Mrindoko stated during the just ended 14th annual general meeting for regional water authorities here that nearly 40 percent of water gets lost through leakages and unaccounted water usage in the country.
“As a result, ordinary people continue to suffer high costs related to water bills because in order to offset the losses, water authorities compensate by overcharging their legal customers,” he said. It was recently discovered that the Arusha Urban Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (AUWSA) is losing 5.1bn/- annually due to water leakages.
The loss amounts 17, 480 cubic litres of treated water that get lost daily through broken and leaking pipes networking the city water supply service mapping. Experts say that the amount of water lost through leakages in Arusha on a daily basis is equivalent to over 12m/- loss of revenue in 24 hours which adds up to over 384m/- that AUWSA loses every month and a whopping 5.1bn/- annual loss of cumulative revenues.
AUWSA taps water from 16 wells and natural springs as well as two main rivers of Nduruma and Themi. “When water leaks what is lost is the investment the authority has put into treating it, because the leaked water has been treated and ready for human consumption, but 38 percent of treated water is lost through leakages,” Eng Mrindoko said, adding that money invested in purifying and treating water is never recovered.
In a city with an estimated 500,000 residents, AUWSA has just managed to reach 35,000 customers and the authority has been challenged to boost its coverage to reach at least 80,000 residents to improve its customer base as well as revenue collection.
Source Tanzania Daily News
