City to roll out prepaid water meter campaign

Municipal Reporter
Harare City Council has set aside $31 000 for an aggressive prepaid smart water meter awareness campaign and consultations to raise awareness on the benefits of the new technology to ensure acceptability of the concept.

The city is expected to carry out a trial run in the central business district (CBD), Avenues area, all council-owned buildings and selected Northern suburbs despite massive resistance from residents’ organisations which have been urging residents to resist the pre-paid water metering system.

According to the recent minutes of the Finance and Development Committee, the Information and Publicity Committee recommended council to conduct smart water meters awareness campaigns and consultations subject to the concurrence of their committee.

“The campaign would include an all-stakeholders breakfast meeting, media blitz, advertisement on both print and electronic media and ward based consultative meetings,” read the minutes.

“The acting town clerk (Mrs Josephine Ncube) had advised that the campaigns were anticipated to cost a total of $31 824.”

Council has since approved the programme.

The city argues that the pre-paid water metering system is in line with modern trends in water delivery management.

Government, last year, gave local authorities the nod to install prepaid water meters saying while it understands that water is a basic human right, residents should pay for treatment of water and the cost of pumping it into their homes.

The then Environment, Water and Climate Minister Saviour Kasukuwere said prepaid water meters were necessary to support local authorities, while Harare mayor Mr Bernard Manyenyeni is on record saying the city was not going back on the project considering the fast-changing operational systems as a result of the ever-changing technology.

The Harare Residents Trust said it was opposed to the installation of the prepaid water meters.

“As our policy makers, the councillors in Harare have demonstrated that they have no idea what they have to do when in council chambers,” said the organisation.

“The majority of them, save for about 15 councillors, are lost and have no business representing the residents of Harare.

“The HRT, and fellow residents’ associations, have rejected the prepaid water meters, which are an elitist tool to enrich the rich and weaken the poor masses. We reject the prepaid water meters.”