Taita Taveta county’s water and sewerage company, Tavevo, has started a sensitisation campaign on the consequences of illegal connection.
The campaign is aimed at reducing water losses occasioned by leaks, bursts, meter tampering and illegal connections.
The county-owned company is banking on the newly formed non-revenue water team to tame the theft of the commodity and meet revenue targets.
The non-revenue water team is working closely with the Critical Infrastructure Protection Unit to nab people involved in water theft and vandalism in the region.
“The main target is to curb losses recorded as a result of non-revenue water and vandalism. The sensitisation campaign barazas also provide a platform to identify areas where we need to improve our services,” acting managing director Richard Kibengo said.
The county loses at least Sh19 million monthly on non-revenue water and vandalism.
Kibengo said nearly 36 per cent of water produced by the company is unaccounted for due to vandalism, unpaid bills and water theft through illegal water connections.
The campaigns, he said, are among interventions put in place to weed out people involved in illegal water connections.
Kibengo further said the company targets to reduce water losses to less than 20 per cent by 2032 as part of its 10-year strategic plan.
He said increased revenues will ensure adequate finances for funding infrastructure projects, which will in turn generate more revenues for the company.
Kibengo asked customers to rebury the pipes, which have been exposed to reduce cases of water leaks and vandalism.
He said most water theft cases in the region range from meter tampering, meter bypass, meter reversing, illegal re-connection and illegal connection.
Meanwhile, the Critical Infrastructure Police Unit in Voi is questioning scrap metal dealers in relation to growing incidents of water infrastructure vandalism and theft.
The team on Wednesday arrested two suspects following pipe vandalism in Marungu.
The two are also accused of meter theft cases in Misharinyi, Voi subcounty.
Scrap metal dealers have been put on notice against buying any water infrastructure and instead cooperate with the water company to end vandalism.
