The Harare City Council (HCC) has allocated US$216 million from its 2024 budget to address water challenges and improve service provision in the water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) sector. The capital city of Zimbabwe has been facing severe water shortages for many years, with some wards and districts going without stable and safe drinking water for extended periods.
In his New Year message, Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume announced that the allocated funds will be used for key projects aimed at bridging the water supply gaps. One of the major projects includes the rehabilitation of water treatment plants and the distribution network. This will involve refurbishment at Morton Jaffray, including the rehabilitation of 14 filters and the replacement of 3 pumps, to improve water production and pumping capacity. Once complete, this is expected to increase water production from the current average of 280 litres per day to 450 megaliters per day.
Mafume said the local government authority also plans to implement interventions in the distribution network, such as pipe replacement and the installation of 2000 commercial and 40,000 domestic prepaid water meters. He said:
This will result in reduction of non-revenue water by 2% from 60% to 58%. These metering interventions are expected to improve revenue collection efficiency to 60% from the current 40% attributed to the targeted consumers. Protect the vulnerable groups of the society.
We are hopeful that in 2024 we will reach 450 megalitres of water production per day. Although this is not adequate to supply the citizens of Harare, it will at least improve on the coverage aspect which has remained limited.
Harare has been grappling with water shortages for over a decade due to financial, operational, and management challenges faced by the local authority.