Water loss weighs down WUC
Mpho Mokwape | Tuesday May 26, 2026 10:29
WUC Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Gaselemogwe Senai, made the disclosures while appearing before Parliament’s Standing Committee on Statutory Bodies and State Enterprises to account for the performance of the Water Utilities Corporation (WUC) during the reporting period.
Addressing the committee, Senai said the corporation operates under difficult conditions shaped by water scarcity, climate variability and increasing public demand for services.
“We operate in a very challenging environment characterised by water scarcity, climate variability, ageing infrastructure, rising operational costs and increasing service expectations,” he said.
He said the corporation’s work is guided by national development priorities, including Vision 2036, the National Development Plan, and the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 6, which aims to ensure universal access to water and sanitation services by 2030.
“Our mandate is to develop, operate and maintain water supply and wastewater infrastructure, and to ensure reliable, safe and efficient delivery of potable water and sanitation services,” Senai told the committee.
He explained that WUC serves both urban and rural communities across Botswana while balancing service delivery obligations with financial sustainability and infrastructure management.
“To guide its long-term direction, the corporation has adopted the 2025-2031 strategic plans. The strategy places strong emphasis on financial sustainability, service reliability, customer experience, governance, environmental responsibility and institutional resilience,” he said.
Senai said Botswana currently has a consumer base of about 2.5 million people consuming water at an average rate of 220 litres per capita per day, which he said is a concern because it is on the higher side compared to an international benchmark of about 120 litres per day.
The CEO also highlighted concerns about labour costs within the corporation. WUC currently employs 3,517 workers, with labour costs accounting for a large share of the corporation’s revenue.
“We have a labour-to-cost ratio of 42 percent and a labour-to-revenue ratio of 48 percent. Almost 50 percent of the revenue that we get goes to salaries and wages,” Senai said.
The corporation currently has more than 600,000 customer connections across the country, including villages and settlements where water infrastructure is still being expanded.
Senai said they supply villages without infrastructure, and they continue to do so, and some of them are ungazetted settlements.
He stated that WUC currently supplies water to 39 ungazetted settlements out of the country’s 517 villages.
Despite the challenges, the corporation reported improvements in water supply reliability. Senai said WUC has managed to provide potable water for an average of 22 hours out of 24 hours daily, meeting its target.
“Could we be able to supply 23 hours out of 24 hours? That is what we continue to work towards,” he said.
One of the corporation’s biggest challenges remains non-revenue water, which refers to treated water lost through leaks, burst pipes and ageing infrastructure before reaching customers.
“Almost 50 percent of the water that we supply, we lose to the ground due to the dilapidated infrastructure,” Senai revealed.
He said the national supply-demand ratio currently stands at 83 percent, meaning around 17 percent of the population still does not have a reliable water supply.
However, access to drinking water services has improved significantly as Senai said access to drinking water is commendable at 91 percent.
The CEO also highlighted disparities in water quality compliance between urban and rural areas. He said urban centres continue to meet the Botswana Bureau of Standards' requirements, while rural areas still face infrastructure gaps.
“In urban centres, we have consistently been able to attain 100 percent compliance. Whereas in rural areas, we are at 70 percent. This is due to incomplete water treatment infrastructure in rural settlements,” Senai said.
Access to sanitation services remains another challenge, with national sanitation coverage standing at 55 percent.
Senai said WUC currently manages an asset base valued at P24.6 billion.
Turning to infrastructure development, the CEO said the corporation had made major progress in delivering water and wastewater projects nationwide during the reporting period.
“The corporation demonstrated strong performance in the delivery of major capital and infrastructure projects,” he told the committee.
He said several key projects were completed, substantially progressed or commissioned during the five-year reporting period, helping strengthen national water supply systems and improve service coverage.
“The sustained momentum in project delivery has materially strengthened national water supply resilience and service coverage,” Senai said.
He credited the progress to improved project planning, execution and coordination among institutions.
According to Senai, government-funded infrastructure developments played a critical role in improving water security across the country despite the technical complexity and geographical spread of projects.
“These projects directly support water security objectives and provide a solid foundation for improved operational performance going forward,” he said.
On water supply reliability, Senai said WUC recorded notable improvements in both urban and rural areas due to infrastructure upgrades and better operational management.
“Key achievements include improved supply reliability in both urban and rural areas, with increased daily supply hours in major service centres,” he said.
Among the flagship developments highlighted were the North-South Carrier Scheme and the Masama water project.
“Believe it or not, these are the flagship projects that we have been able to achieve during the NDP 11 period and have had a marked impact on the livelihoods of our people,” Senai said.
He also reported progress in wastewater management infrastructure, including the construction of wastewater treatment plants in several major villages.
“Wastewater services continue to progress, particularly in system reliability, infrastructure rehabilitation and environmental protection,” he said.
The projects include completed wastewater treatment plants in areas such as Maun and Mosopa aimed at improving operational efficiency and environmental management.
In conclusion, Senai told the committee that the corporation recorded steady revenue growth during the reporting period as it continued efforts to improve national water and sanitation services while strengthening long-term sustainability.