Ghana Water Limited MD Ing. Dr. Clifford A. Braimah
Story by: Ishmael Barfi
To address the issue of non-payment of water bills by customers, the producers, and regulators of the production and distributions of quality water to homes across the country, Ghana Water Limited has introduced flexible payment options which include the Customer App, Mobile Money services, as well as numerous partnership with various banks across the country.
According to the Managing Director for Ghana Water Limited, Ing. Dr. Clifford A. Braimah, this enables customers to have a hassle-free payment experience, hence upgrading the billing and collection systems of his outfit.
Addressing the press at this year’s ‘Accounting to our Customers’ 2023 (ATC 2023) and Exhibition on Monday 23rd October, 2023 at its headquarters in Accra, Ing. Dr. Clifford A. Braimah noted that, his institution is very aware of the importance of timely bill payment and are committed to making the process more convenient for their customers.
Adding the introduction of the various payment systems and platforms are initiatives aimed at facilitating compliance and ensuring that their customers can easily meet their financial obligations.
Non-payment of bills by customers Ing. Clifford disclosed, is hampering their revenue generation and affects their ability to maintain and expand infrastructure and services effectively.
Therefore he urged consumers to meet their payment obligations to enable GWL to continue to serve the populace with quality water in their homes hence the sustainability of their operations.
Improving their services, the hardworking Managing Director indicated that, GWL is in the process of implementing Climate Resilience Water Safety Plans (WSP) for all water supply systems within their operational areas.
“These plans serve as a comprehensive risk assessment and management approach that covers every aspect of the water supply process, ensuring the safety of drinking water”, he reiterated.
Touching on non-revenue water, he was of the view that, it is the quest of Ghana Water Limited to ensure efficient water distribution and minimize non-revenue water, therefore several initiatives have been undertaken.
Some of these initiatives he noted encompass production metering, smart metering projects, regional visits, meter testing and verification exercises, and the innovative Water Loss Reduction Performance Based Contract (WLR-PBC).
Production Metering
Ing. Dr. Clifford A. Braimah revealed that, over 400 Water Meters made up of Magnetic and Ultrasonic Clamp-on Meters, have been procured and installed on 90 water systems.
While 336 Meters have already been installed with the rest to follow as chamber construction and Meter shed installations reach completion as well as Drive-By Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) and Fixed Network Smart Metering Project.
In addition, “We have successfully installed approximately 60,000 Smart Meters for drive-by Automatic Meter and Fixed Network Readings in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area (GAMA) region transforming the districts into Smart Districts”, he emphasized.
To ensure accuracy, he disclosed that, a survey has been launched to rectify discrepancies between installation and billing data.
Industrial Metering
Under this, the Ghana Water Likited MD revealed that they have procured and installed 226 Meters for bulk consumers in ATMA and currently replacing all Faulty Meters in all regions
.For Water Loss Reduction Performance Based Contracting (WLR-PBC), GWL he said has launched a technical assessment in the Accra East Region.
Preliminary activities, including GIS mapping and DMA validation, are underway while procurements for the PBC’s implementation have been meticulously planned and executed.
“It Is important to note that we recorded a Non-Revenue Water (NRW) percentage of 46% for the first half of 2023 which is consistent with the NRW percentage recorded for the same period last year, which was also 46%. NRW represents the water that is produced but does not generate revenue due to various losses”, he reiterated.
Source: www.thenewindependentonline.com
