Only three of Ghana’s 13 operational regions met the regulatory benchmark for Non-Revenue Water (NRW) in the first quarter of 2026, according to the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC).

The latest PURC report, “Urban Water Sector Performance at a Glance – 2026 Quarter 1,” puts Ghana Water Limited’s (GWL) national NRW at 49.2%, 6.2 percentage points above the regulatory benchmark of 43%.

Non-Revenue Water refers to water that is produced but does not generate revenue because it is lost through factors including leakages, illegal connections and metering inaccuracies.

The report identified Central, Upper West and Brong Ahafo as the only regions that met the 43% benchmark, recording NRW rates of 25.4%, 29.6% and 39.4%, respectively.

The situation was most critical in the Western, Accra West and Tema operational regions.

Western recorded the highest NRW rate at 66.1%, exceeding the benchmark by 23.1 percentage points.

Accra West followed with 57.2%, while Tema recorded 56.8%. Their NRW rates were 14.2 and 13.8 percentage points above the benchmark, respectively.

The PURC said the three regions therefore required priority interventions to reduce water losses.

“The situation is more critical in Western, Accra West and Tema, where NRW stood at 66.1%, 57.2% and 56.8%, respectively.”

The report identified Ashanti North, Upper East and Volta as regions with relatively smaller gaps to the benchmark.

Ashanti North recorded 43.2% NRW, Upper East 43.8%, and Volta 44.1%.

PURC said the three regions represented immediate opportunities for targeted interventions to bring NRW below the 43% threshold.

Recommended measures include intensified leakage detection and repairs, improved meter accuracy, stronger action against illegal connections, and improvements in billing and customer database records.

The Commission also recommended that GWL examine the operational practices used in Central, Upper West and Brong Ahafo to identify approaches that could be replicated in regions recording higher losses.

National water production increased by 1% to 87.88 million cubic metres in the first quarter of 2026, while water sold increased by 3.7% to 44.68 million cubic metres.

The faster growth in water sales compared with production suggests an improvement in the proportion of water produced that is converted into billed sales.

Production, however, remained heavily concentrated in the Accra-Tema Metropolitan Area (ATMA), which accounted for 55.48 million cubic metres.

Ashanti followed with 10.19 million cubic metres, while Central and Western recorded 4.86 million and 4.24 million cubic metres, respectively.

The PURC findings highlight the financial and operational implications of high NRW, particularly for GWL’s ability to generate revenue from water already produced.

Reducing water losses could improve the utility’s financial sustainability, increase the volume of water available for sale and reduce pressure to meet demand solely through increased production.