Harare City Council’s plan to introduce prepaid water meters has sparked sharp criticism from residents, who fear the move prioritises profit over the constitutional right to clean water.
Harare Residents Trust (Trust) Director Precious Shumba argues that citizen participation has been sidelined in shaping the new policy, undermining its legitimacy.
“When you want to introduce any major public policy, citizen participation becomes very critical.
“Without the input of residents or the people likely to benefit or be impacted, that policy is illegitimate,” he said.
Shumba contends that the prepaid model is not designed to improve water quality or accessibility but to maximize revenue collection.
He notes that residents are currently failing to access water as the local authority provides only around 40 percent of supply, with the rest lost through leakages and illegal connections.
“It basically means the idea is not to improve the existing situation but to maximize prices.
“The biggest beneficiary is the supplier of the prepaid water meters,” he added.
Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume has defended the policy, likening it to prepaid electricity and phone services.
He argues that upfront payment will strengthen the city’s ability to repair aging infrastructure and unlock financing for expansion.
“No one is willing to give us finance without a sustainable plan.
“And the sustainable plan is to ensure that anyone who receives water pays for it,” he said, promising safeguards for low-income households.
Still, critics like Shumba remain sceptical, pointing to the city’s lack of a functional billing system and unaddressed issues of water quality.
“What happens when people don’t have water, and the quality has not been addressed?” he asked.
Under Section 77(a) of Zimbabwe’s Constitution, access to safe, clean water is a right—not a privilege tied to one’s ability to pay first.
The debate now centres on whether prepaid water meters can realistically deliver this right, or deepen inequalities in access.
