* SRWB to provide the meter and plumber only
* Customers to buy own pipes and fittings
* To be responsible for digging and filling up trenches
* Subsidized connection fee at K15,000
Maravi Express
To ensure that customers are connected on time, Southern Region Water Board (SRWB) is transferring costs of water connections to its customers in a new policy in which the customers will be required to buy their own pipes and fittings.
In a statement, SRWB says under the new policy the utility service provider will only provide the meter, a pipeline layout, a plumber and the connection — effective February 1, 2021.
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Customers will apply for connection at the Board’s Scheme Offices in all its water supply areas and its “plumbers shall visit the customer’s site to carry out an assessment and provide a breakdown of materials required for the connection”.
“The applicant shall pay the application fee of K15,000 upon confirmation from assessing plumbers that water supply connection would be achievable,” said the statement.
“The applicant will source the materials which shall include pipes and fittings according to specification set by the Board. The board shall approve the materials [which] will be kept by the applicant until the day of the connection.
“Apart from the materials, the customer will also be responsible for the excavation and backfilling of the trenches for the new water connection under the supervision of the Board.”
The Board’s responsibility shall be dying of the GI pipes, pipeline laying, fitting the meter, connecting to water supply system and maintenance of pipeline.
“Connections shall strictly be done on first-come first-served basis,” says the Board.
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