Kilimanjaro, TZ – Lishe Bora checks families’ willingness and ability to pay for water – 15 Feb 2021

Lishe Bora interviewed Mkyashi Water Project customers about their water bills and interest in continued supply following an interruption in service. Overall, the community provided positive feedback about possible next steps for restarting the water project.

Mary, the Lishe Bora manager, interviewed eleven of the nineteen current customers about their willingness and ability to pay for water. Of the eleven users, all are willing and able to pay their bills. Additionally, five users explained to Mary specific actions to pay their bill. For example, MGA family explained they would sell bananas to pay their bill.

The project needs a new electric pump before it can restart. The anticipated cost to purchase and install a new electric water pump is 3,000,000 TZS / US$1,304. Fortunately, the outstanding balance due to the water project is 1,683,000 TZS / US$783, so the water customers can raise over half the necessary funds by paying past-due bills. To encourage this, two users have already paid their past-due amounts in 2020 as a good-faith example to the other families.

The main challenge to collecting past-due payments from families is administrative. Families expressed to Mary their collective frustration with the current Water Committee leadership, and are asking for more consistent communications from them.

With this feedback in mind, Mary encouraged the families to put pressure on the Water Committee Leadership to meet more often and vote for new leadership positions. Meanwhile, Lishe Bora will research and advise the committee on the next steps with repayment and finding an investor for the new pump.