Ghana Water Limited (GWL) has detected illegal water connections valued at approximately GH¢5.5 million over a four-month period, following intensified enforcement operations in partnership with National Security.

The Managing Director of GWL, Adam Mutawakilu, described the scale of the violations as “alarming” during an interview on the Citi Breakfast Show on Tuesday, January 13.

Investigations revealed that some water treatment sachet plants had illegally tapped into the company’s distribution system. Additionally, several commercial entities were fraudulently registered and billed as domestic consumers, while some offenders installed bypasses to avoid metering, resulting in substantial revenue losses.

In response, GWL established a Revenue Enhancement Taskforce in August, comprising three specialised teams working alongside security agencies to identify and clamp down on illegal connections. Between August and December, the taskforce recovered over GH¢1.3 million from offenders, and the company’s legal department has initiated prosecution proceedings to deter future violations.

To sustain these efforts, Mr. Mutawakilu said GWL has partnered with National Security to expand the taskforce from three to 12 teams nationwide, enhancing detection efforts and reducing non-revenue water losses.

“With the work of the three taskforce teams, non-revenue water dropped from 52 per cent in January to 49.4 per cent by November. That is encouraging, so we have engaged National Security to expand the teams to 12,” he said.

He expressed confidence that the expanded operations would further strengthen revenue mobilisation and safeguard the sustainability of Ghana’s water supply system.