Ghana Water Limited (GWL) has announced a stronger partnership with security agencies and the judiciary to tackle illegal water connections and other practices causing heavy losses to the company.

The move was revealed during a high-level stakeholder engagement held at the Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra, where the acting Managing Director of GWL, Adam Mutawakilu, described commercial water losses as one of the company’s biggest challenges.

“The issue of commercial water losses is one of the pressing challenges facing Ghana Water Limited today. These losses, driven by illegal connections, bypassing, inaccurate billing, and non-payment for water consumption, significantly impact our revenue.

"This not only threatens our financial sustainability, but also hampers our ability to expand water infrastructure to underserved communities, maintain and upgrade ageing networks, and ensure a consistent supply of safe and affordable water to all Ghanaians,” Mr Mutawakilu said.

He explained that the situation is draining the company’s resources and making it increasingly difficult to fund operations.

“Since assuming office in February 2025, we have faced a challenging landscape, significant liability on electricity, chemicals, other operational costs, continuing pressure on equipment procurement needs, and a mounting wage bill driven by low revenue,” Mr Mutawakilu noted.

“In July 2025, I established revenue enhancement teams. Though the operational period has been brief, the field investigation has mapped skilled actors, hotspots, and the topography of commercial losses across our systems. This finding gives us a far clearer picture of where we are and how to act decisively.”

As part of the new measures, GWL will integrate agreed strategies into its operational framework, working closely with the judiciary and law enforcement agencies to enforce anti-water theft regulations.

“Strengthening partnership with law enforcement, regulators, and the judiciary to enforce anti-water theft measures, and promoting transparency and accountability in addressing illegal connections and billing irregularities, are key steps forward,” Mr Mutawakilu explained.

According to him, tackling water losses will help the company expand access to safe drinking water in line with Sustainable Development Goal 6 and the government’s Water for All agenda, while also improving customer satisfaction and ensuring long-term sustainability of supply systems.