City residents could start paying for water bills to the Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company (NWSC) using tokens.
This is after Nairobi Members of County Assembly (MCAs) unanimously passed a motion to digitize the water industry.
While moving the motion, Clay City ward representative Mwaura Samora explained that the move will cushion Nairobians during harsh economic times.
“The move will benefit city dwellers as they will able to buy water according to their budget,” Samora remarked while tabling the motion.
“Having digital water meters is doable because we have private water suppliers who are already doing it.
“The meters will also help solve the problem of billing as well as preventing wastage,” he added.
The billing system will mirror Kenya Power and Lighting Company's (KPLC) token system.
Should the motion sail through and become law, City residents will pay for water units using mobile money to NWSC bank accounts.
They will then receive a confirmation message and unique recharge code.
The customer will then key in the code to a specific digital token meter provided by NWSC.
The move now means Nairobi County residents will no longer be billed monthly but according to their water consumption.
The move comes at a time when President William Ruto has announced that the national government will be buying water from private investors to distribute to the public through a private-public partnership.
“We will adopt a public-private partnership framework by entering into water purchase agreements with investors,
“I have already instructed Treasury to work on the regulations that will facilitate the mechanism as the one we have with the energy sector,” Ruto stated on September 9, 2022.
