Pay-as-you-drink

Ghanaians to pay for water before consumption
Accra, Feb. 4, GNA - The Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) will by the middle of this year introduce a prepaid meter system in the major cities of the country as part of its programme to ensure efficiency in service delivery and revenue mobilisation.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Tuesday, Mr. Jonathan Nii Ahele Nunoo, Managing Director, GWCL said the system which is currently being run on pilot basis at Tema, would enable consumers to budget and manage their own water usage.

He said the targeted users would be the industrial and commercial consumers, whilst it becomes optional for domestic consumers.

"It will provide improved management information on water usage and payment, thereby, reducing substantially the problem of unaccounted for water in the water supply/reticulation mechanism," Mr Nunoo explained.

He said currently, the GWCL was testing some of the prepaid meters from Israel, Germany and China to assess which type would be convenient, affordable and durable for the Ghanaian consumer.

The company, He said was also undertaking consultations exercises with some experienced countries.

On its usage, Mr Nunoo said the system is made up of a point of sale units and with the aid of token cards, consumers would be able to operate the meter without any difficulty.

"When you insert your card which is like a mobile phone card, the meter reads the total amount of water credit and allows you to draw water in your home until all your credit expires," he said.

He said when the card is exhausted; the prepaid meter automatically stops the flow of water.

Mr Nunoo, however, noted that the prepaid meters would be more expensive than the conventional ones.