KAMPALA — Dr Silver Mugisha, the National Water and Sewerage Cooperation (NWSC) Managing Director has explained water tariffs saying that the public is aught to understand the dynamics related to water production.
“We have the low quality [water] which is deteriorating and of course when it deteriorates that means we have to use more chemicals and when we use more chemicals it means the cost of production has to go up,” he explained in an interview.
This follows several complaints from consumers who say vendors exploit them by slapping charges of up to UGX500, and 400 per jerrycan in some parts of the country including Kampala.
On the perceptions of high water tariffs, Dr Mugisha said that a section of population think the water tariffs is high because NWSC has not communicated enough to make them understand the high costs involved production and distribution of such clean and high quality water to them.
“They think that we are getting free water really,” he said adding that “this is something that we have been working on with our managers, with our communication team to make sure that the people understand that when water is abstracted, you have to pump it, you have to treat it and you have to distribute it to the people and that’s the service that we charge for.”
Dr. Mugisha also said that water tariffs are much lower in all parts of Uganda compared to prices of other things, like beer, meat, airtime and others
Last year, Dr. Mugisha announced that government through the corporation will install over 1000 public water points in various parts of Kampala to cater for the urban poor.
This according to him would improve water supply reliability and reduce the cost of water to only UGX50 per jerrycan.
Currently a jerrycan of water ranges from UGX 100 to UGX300 on individual and public water points in different parts of Kampala.
He also said that once works for Katosi water plant are completed, water supply and reliability to central Uganda will be guaranteed up to 2040.
