The Ghana Water Company says it has begun the implementation of its electronic billing system - (June, 2016).

This means customers of the Ghana Water Company are expected to pay their bills electronically.

Until the new system, officials of the company go around to manually read consumption data of clients. It took at least a month for the company to make a determination of how much a customer has to pay, Head of Public Relations and Communications, Stanley Martey has observed.

But under the new electronic system, clients can know their consumption instantly and make payment, he said.

A statement issued by the company states; “With effect from 1st June, 2016, GWCL meter readers will be capturing customer consumption data with a hand-held android device equipped with a software, which already has customers’ data comprising the following: customer name, customer phone number, customer’s last captured consumption data, customer’s geographical location and other relevant information”.

“The system will calculate customers’ water consumption and automatically send them their corresponding bill via text message (SMS) and or e-mail. Customers are, therefore, required to make available to GWCL, two reliable cell phone numbers each, and email addresses if possible, to receive their bills.

“Once customers receive their bills via the text message and or e-mail, they are to make payment by purchasing a “Ghana Water” payment scratch card from any GWCL collection or customer service point, authorised vendors or designated points within the communities and pay their water bills”.

A customer would text the code on the scratch card to the Ghana Water Company's contact numbers to make instant payment. The vouchers, he said will be sold at convenient points over the counter with the highest card costing GHC200.

The Comprehensive GPS-based monitoring system, according to the statement has been put in place to check all malpractices against the Ghana Water Company Limited, including illegal connections, meter by-passes.

The areas include all the communities in Tema, Kpone, Ashaiman, Spintex, Baatsonaa, Sakumono, Kpong, Akuse, Tema New Town, and surrounding areas.

The new billing and payment system will eventually be scaled up to cover the whole country upon successful implementation at the Tema region.

The company says the move will help curb the problem of illegal connections which result in revenue leakages.