Lawmaker calls for a free basic daily water allocation as households struggle with water costs and unreliable supplies

HARARE — A Zimbabwean senator has called on the government to review prepaid water meters, warning that poor families risk losing access to running water when they cannot afford to pay.

Senator Itayi Mwanza raised the concerns during debate on President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s State of the Nation Address in the Senate on Oct. 8, saying improvements in water infrastructure meant little if households could not afford clean water.

“We appreciate that running water now reaches many taps but too often, especially in Harare, the water that comes out is not even clean. With prepaid meters, where the money runs out, the water runs out,” Mwanza said.

The senator said access to water should not depend entirely on a household’s ability to pay, particularly for families already struggling to meet basic needs.

“For a poor household, this is not simply a question of convenience. It is a question of dignity, health and survival,” Mwanza said.

The lawmaker described the difficulties facing families forced to seek alternative water sources when they cannot afford supplies through their taps.

“Picture a mother standing in a queue at dawn, with a bucket in her hand and a sick child at home. When she cannot afford tap water because she has no money, she returns to a borehole but as more boreholes are drilled, groundwater levels fall,” Mwanza said.

“What provides relief today can become tomorrow’s shortage.”

Mwanza urged the government to introduce protections for vulnerable households, including a guaranteed basic daily water allocation.

“I therefore ask the Government to improve the quality of tap water and review how prepaid meters affect people, our households, by providing a basic daily allocation for every household and strengthening the protection of our underground water,” the senator said.

“Our people should not have to choose between paying for water and meeting other basic needs.”

The remarks came as senators debated whether the economic achievements highlighted in Mnangagwa’s Sept. 29 address were translating into improvements in ordinary Zimbabweans’ lives.

Mwanza acknowledged the government’s reported progress in agriculture, economic growth and infrastructure but said national development should be judged by the services available to households.

“We appreciate the progress that has been made, but we must also ensure that this progress is felt by ordinary Zimbabweans in their homes, villages and communities,” the senator said.

The concerns also extended to the increasing reliance on boreholes, with Mwanza warning that continued groundwater extraction could create longer-term water shortages.

The senator did not provide figures showing how many households currently use prepaid water meters or how many have lost access to water because they could not afford to pay.

Mwanza called for policies that would make clean water affordable while protecting groundwater resources from overuse.