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Reducing Nonrevenue Water in Asia
The Caretaker Approach to NRW Reduction for Asian Cities1

The “caretaker approach” adds a social dimension to addressing Asia’s NRW problem, and is particularly suitable for Asia’s cities. It is based on managing water supplies at the lowest practicable level and on maintaining a good utility and consumer interface.
NONREVENUE WATER IN ASIA

DEFINITION AND RATIONALE

The caretaker approach is essentially one in which an entire distribution system is divided into zones, each containing about 500 connections. A caretaker is appointed to be responsible for all water supply activities within a given zone.

The approach is not new. In fact, it is employed in Tokyo and is, to some extent, also used effectively by one of the concessionaires in Manila through assigning one “aguador” to every 100 connections.

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INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK

A caretaker who lives in the locality is given responsibility for a water distribution zone, and will report to an O&M supervisor at a nearby maintenance depot. The caretaker’s area of responsibility is small enough that it can be walked in its entirety once per week.

The caretaker will lease an office from a resident in his or her zone of responsibility and have access to a telephone (or will use a mobile phone). The O&M supervisor (an engineer) will be responsible for 10 caretakers and not more than 5,000 connections.

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CARETAKER DUTIES

The caretaker is expected to develop friendly relationships with people living in the zone he or she is accountable for. The caretaker’s responsibilities include

  • Keeping a daily diary of all water activities in the zone.
  • Mapping the distribution system, including all connections.
  • Accurately metering all consumer connections and arranging for meter replacement when necessary.
  • Analyzing billing records and collections monthly, investigating high and low consumption and tardy payments, and reporting total consumption each month.
  • Reporting leaks to be repaired and recording the dates the repairs were accomplished.
  • Reporting maintenance or new work requested and completed.
  • Recording and following up on consumer complaints.
  • Inspecting plumbing in all households and assisting with repairs, where feasible.
  • Disseminating notices of interruption of supply for maintenance purposes and information concerning water tariffs, water consumption and conservation, demand management, hygiene education, and utility performance to consumers.
  • Reporting alternative sources of water used by both utility customers and noncustomers.
  • Reporting hours of service and pressure to the zone (day and night).
  • Reporting numbers of persons in each household in the zone each year.
  • Reading district flow meters and pressure gauges daily.
  • Inspecting the entire zone on foot weekly.

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O&M SUPERVISOR DUTIES

The O&M supervisor is expected to support the caretaker by

  • Providing timely support and quality control on maintenance and repairs.
  • Visiting and talking with each caretaker daily.
  • Reviewing caretaker diaries weekly and provide comments and guidance.
  • Inspecting zones monthly with each caretaker.
  • Encouraging competition and incentives among caretakers for good performance.
  • Commenting on all caretaker reports before submitting them to the head office.

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COMBINING HIGH AND LOW TECHNOLOGY

In this age of information technology, there are few excuses for not having up-to-date data on every connected and nonconnected household in a given water service area. If this information is appropriately analyzed, it will be relatively easy to trace illegal connections, defective meters, and incorrect meter reading.

At the same time, with the ability of caretakers to get to know the people in their zones, it should be possible to flush out most illegal connections. By examining individual zones and comparing these with others, it should be possible to identify quickly any problem areas.

  1. * The contents of this article are based on Chapter 9 of Asian Water Supplies: Reaching the Urban Poor written by Arthur McIntosh.


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