NEXUS BETWEEN WATER THEFT AND THE LEVEL OF NON-REVENUE WATER IN NYERI COUNTY
NEXUS BETWEEN WATER THEFT AND THE LEVEL OF NON-REVENUE WATER IN NYERI COUNTY
Maina Michael Mwangi - Masters in Biostatistics, Karatina University, Kenya
ABSTRACT
Strategies to reduce water losses have been developed and are practiced worldwide. Whilst developed countries have to cope mainly with physical losses, developing countries are also facing the issue of commercial losses including water meters inaccuracies and water thefts. In spite of the establishment of a water loss control unit and various action plans launched by the ministry in-charge of water to reduce NRW, the water losses in Kenya water supply system still remain high. Over the past decades, the water situation for Nyeri County has changed from one of relative abundance to one of relative scarcity. This is because the population growth and rapid urbanization are imposing rapidly growing demands and pressure on the water resources. This is coupled with high levels of NRW due to high leakage and inefficient maintenance of pipe network which has resulted into customer complaints and huge financial losses. The purpose of this research study was to scrutinize the nexus between water theft and the level of non-revenue water in Nyeri County. For the purpose of this study, case study design of research was used. The study was carried out in Nyeri County, Kenya. It focused on the water supply region in the areas of jurisdiction of the five water services providers in the county. The unit of observation was the 270 employees in top, middle and low level management in the companies. From the population of 270, a sample of 30% from within each group in proportions that each group bear to the population as a whole was taken. In this research, semi-structured questionnaires were the instruments used. Data that was collected from the field was coded, and entered into and analyzed using statistics software (SPSS, Version 27.0). This study adopted both descriptive and inferential statistics. The study found out that water theft determines the overall level of non-revenue water in the organization to a moderate extent. The study further established that measures taken by the company to address the problem of NRW caused by water theft are: to fight illegal water connections and there is reliable water supply in all the areas with water distribution network. The study concluded that aspects of water theft such as individual perception, corruption and intermittent water supply are the major contributors of non-revenue water in Nyeri County, Kenya. The study recommended that the companies should come up with measures of curbing water theft which is a great contributor to the increase in non-revenue water. This can be made by routine checks of the company infrastructure to ensure that there are no illegal connections that the company cannot account for.
