Operators in the rural water sub-sector stare at the possibility of losing contracts when the government consolidates water systems management.

According to the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory body (Rura), districts have until March to slash the number of operators they work with to only two.

The move is described as one aimed at ensuring professionalism and sustainable network management in the rural water service provision.

“It means that even if there are 20 or 30 systems in a district, they should still fall under maximum two operators because it’s easier to enforce when you are dealing with fewer operators than when you are dealing with many,” said Patrick Nyirishema, RURA acting director general.

The forum for Private Operators of Water and Sanitation Systems in Rwanda (FEPEAR) indicates there are more than 43 operators in the rural water service provision.

They operate over 1,000 water supply facilities across the country through public private partnership arrangements with respective districts. These include water supply and distribution networks running on diesel, electricity, gravity and complex systems.

Currently, only 22 operators in the rural water sub-sector have licences valid until 2021 as per Rura’s notice issued on October 16, 2016.

Although the fate of those not issued with licences remains unknown, sources told Rwanda Today that licensing was based on data submitted by individual operators to Rura earlier last year.

“We were requested to fill out forms with data regarding our staff, wage and details on annual reports as well as technical information.

We did not hear from Rura till some of us were called to pick licences,” said Joseph Usabimana, a rural water operator with Aquavirunga Ltd.

The ongoing consolidation of rural water supply systems under one management could see the number of operators further reduced though the selection criteria are yet to be clear.

A section of the operators has expressed concerns that the move could favour the big players over the small contractors while at the same time creating monopoly likely to kill good service delivery in the sector.

“Already we had operators who are profit-oriented and less concerned with good service delivery.

We still have situations where set tariffs haven’t been effected, and the operator in question still gets additional systems under his management,” said Alphonse Hakorimana, an operator in Gicumbi district.

There has been an outcry among rural operators over operating at a loss by managing the old water infrastructure, resulting in high operating costs, which are then passed on to the users through hiked tariffs.

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Cyprien Sebikwekwe, who heads the forum of operators, told Rwanda Today the reduction of operators would help the few remaining expand their footprint with revenues in profitable systems potentially covering the loss in unprofitable ones.

Operators describe water systems other than those dependent on gravity as costly, requiring multiple water pumping stations.

Recently, the government promised to work closely with the operators to make the water networks maintained and managed sustainably.

The government also promised incentives to shield rural users from exorbitant charges and poor service.

Rura officials said districts water management boards ought to have finished centralising all their water supply systems by March to pave the way for easy enforcement of measures aimed at ensuring sustainable and effective functionality of rural water supply infrastructure as well as good service delivery.

In the new plan, it is expected that only licensed operators, companies and individual providers, will be allowed to compete for districts tender with regard to operating rural water infrastructure.

But Mr Sebikwekwe said operators who lose contracts in the on-going consolidation could be sub-contracted by those who will still be in business.