Harare eyes smart water meters to recover US$407m debt

Remember Deketeke

Municipal Correspondent

THE Harare City Council is considering rolling out smart prepaid water meters next year as it moves to recover more than ZiG11 billion — equivalent to about US$407 million — owed by residents, industry, the Government and other local authorities.

The proposal intends to use smart meters to both enforce payment for current consumption and recover outstanding debts.

Finance and Development Committee chairperson Councillor Jubilation Shoko said the council was studying the proposal following positive feedback from residents.

“When we started smart water meter installations, we received feedback from different constituents and residents, with some confirming that it is a necessary tool for revenue collection,” he said.

“We are looking at possibly emulating ZESA. You remember years back when ZESA introduced the prepaid system, they used the very same system to recover their debts. That is exactly what we are looking at, possibly emulating the same system where smart metering will be used as a debt recovery tool and also enforcing the payment of current bills.”

Council is yet to finalise how the proposed system would be used to recover existing arrears, with Cllr Shoko stressing that the initiative remained a proposal.

“We have put it out there as a proposal, and we need to work on the modalities, making sure that, of course, it will not burden our residents,” he said.

The proposal comes against the backdrop of massive debts owed to the council, with domestic consumers accounting for ZiG2,47 billion, industry ZiG1,49 billion and other local authorities and Government owing ZiG532 million.

Cllr Shoko acknowledged residents’ right to access water but said consumers also had an obligation to meet their financial commitments to the local authority.

The 2027 proposed budget seeks to channel significant resources towards water, sanitation and hygiene infrastructure, including replacing ageing pipes, upgrading existing facilities, installing new pumps and investing in water treatment works to increase production.

The council is targeting an increase in water production to 520 megalitres, while wastewater treatment, traffic-light rehabilitation and the refurbishment of libraries and clinics are also among the key priorities.

Permanent Secretary for Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Harare Metropolitan province Dr Shingirayi Mushamba welcomed the proposed budget, particularly the decision to largely maintain tariffs, licences and other charges at their 2026 levels.

This, he said, would provide relief to residents and businesses while remaining consistent with Government policy on the ease of doing business.

“We appreciate the fact that there has been compliance, significantly, in terms of not increasing tariffs, consistent with national Government policy on ease of doing business,” Dr Mushamba said.

He said the budget also addressed key service-delivery priorities, including water, sanitation, wastewater management and infrastructure development, while making provisions for women, youths and small and medium enterprises.

However, residents believe the council should first address weaknesses in its billing system before introducing an integrated prepaid payment model.

Harare Residents Trust chairperson Mr Precious Shumba welcomed the decision not to increase water tariffs but said residents had experienced cases of double billing despite having prepaid water meters installed at their properties.

“If the prepaid water meters are using smart technologies and linked to the billing system, we should not be having these challenges of double billing,” he said.

Mr Shumba called for further scrutiny of the proposed budget, particularly expenditure on governance and administration, while urging the council to adequately equip district offices and improve service delivery.

He also called for the timely disbursement of devolution and road funds by Central Government and the recruitment of a substantive finance director to strengthen the council’s financial management.

Combined Harare Residents Association chairperson Mr Reuben Akili said the budget had prioritised critical infrastructure and social services but warned that implementation would depend on the council’s ability to improve revenue collection and secure adequate funding.

“The budget really speaks to development because when we look at the key components, number one is trying to deal with wastewater treatment and, number two, improving water supplies to 520 megalitres,” he said.

The council, Mr Akili said, also intended to use parking revenue to rehabilitate traffic lights and improve parking infrastructure.

However, he said revenue collection efficiency had remained between 50 and 60 percent over the past three years, limiting the local authority’s capacity to finance capital projects.

“Instead of only increasing the budget, what is very important is to maximise revenue collection and improve the revenue streams that contribute towards funding social service provision.”

Source: Harare eyes smart water meters to recover US$407m debt – herald

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