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Dawasco has long way to go
2005-11-16 07:23:30
By Editor
Sustainability is a problem that faces all development, in industrialised countries as well as in the developing world.
In recent years, a debate on a sustainable environment, has taken urgency through the adoption of Agenda 21 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, and as re-stressed in Johannesburg in 2002.
In the global debate, sustainability is considered primarily in terms of continuing to improve human well-being, whilst not undermining the natural resource base on which future generations depend.
And the problem is none, other than the provision of adequate water supply in the developing world. It has been an ongoing quest that has occupied the minds of development experts and governments for the past half century or so.
Although a great deal has been done, including enormous amounts of money spent and proclaimed ’Drinking Water Decade,’ coverage levels remain inadequate.
A new trend has been emerging in recent years. Throughout the developing world, increasing amounts of money are now being spent on the rehabilitation of water infrastructure which have fallen into disrepair.
This is where Tanzania’s own experience comes into the picture, in so far as its provision of water to its largest metropolis of Dar es Salaam and its environs is concerned.
Sustainability seems a very simple terminology – whether or not something continues to work over time.
For a water service, this would mean that water continues to be available in quality and quantity for the period for which it was designed .
In other words, if a consumer can turn on the tap for 15 or 20 years and the water comes out, at the same rate and quality as the day the scheme was commissioned, then it is a sustainable supply, provided that the scheme had not become derelict and had to be completely rehabilitated.
For, that is precisely what happened to the system that used to supply drinking water for residents of Dar es Salaam and its environs.
’Gradually, from the late 1980s, the water supply system for the region became derelict – supply pipes clogged in many parts, unauthorised water connections went on unchecked, water harvesting capacity at treatment plants remained the same despite rapid population increase.
As stated, this downward trend remained unchecked until consumers became reluctant to pay their bills because of erratic or no supply of water.
With reduced revenues, the water utility authority was unable to make any improvements and the only way out was massive overhaul of the whole water supply and distribution system that could only be managed by private investor through privatisation.
The first investor, City Water, was kicked out early this year after about only two years of operation – for what was seen as its feet-dragging over the rehabilitation drive.
A local investor Dawasco took over and some progress is claimed to have been realised.
Much of the claimed success is centred on its ability to collect more revenue than its predecessor, even though water provision is still a problem, as was evidenced on Monday when the Minister for Water and Livestock Development Edward Lowassa toured some areas of Dar es Salaam.
He was told by the residents that many areas of the city and its environs were still without water, some for over 10 years.
We congratulate the Minister for his step to tour the areas, and call upon others to emulate him.
However, we have a word of advice to Dawasco. While we congratulate them for work done so far, they should realise that city residents want nothing from them but water.
The challenge facing them is how to quench the thirst of city residents, many of whom cannot differentiate between village and city life.
Water shortage in Dar es Salaam has reached alarming proportions and we dare say this is one big problem that stalls development.
It is only when the majority of consumers get a steady supply of water that Dawasco should be proud of being capable of collecting more revenue and not before.
If the capital city itself cannot receive sufficient water , how can Tanzania expect to attain the Millennium Development Goal in water supply?
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