Cowdray Park residents in Bulawayo are calling on city authorities to reduce water shedding hours, saying the current schedule is unreliable and continues to disrupt daily life.
Speaking at a residents’ meeting held in Segment 8B, community members said they are officially scheduled to receive water for three consecutive days, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but claim supplies are often cut short.
“We were hoping that following the inflows into the dams, water shedding hours would be reduced,” one resident said. “In Cowdray Park we are supposed to receive water for three days, but we no longer get the full three days. We are meant to get water on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but it gets cut early.”
According to the latest figures, Insiza Dam is about 88% full, Upper Ncema stands at 56%, while Umzingwane Dam is at 48%.
Ward 6 councillor Nkosinathi Hove acknowledged the concerns, saying the city’s intention is to provide an uninterrupted three-day supply, but infrastructure challenges are affecting delivery.
“At the moment, residents are supposed to get an uninterrupted water supply for three days, but the challenge is the water infrastructure,” he said.
Cllr Hove said the design of the water distribution system has contributed to the problem. Water, he explained, reaches Esigodweni before flowing to Segment 8B, resulting in delays and gradual pressure build-up.
“By the nature of the design that was done, water reaches Esigodweni before reaching Segment 8B. Pressure then builds up slowly to reach this side. That was a mistake,” he said.
He added that ageing infrastructure has worsened the situation, with frequent pipe bursts along the distribution line disrupting supply.
“Along the way from Esigodweni there are bursts because our pipes are now rotten. When there are bursts, people report that water is being wasted, forgetting that other areas are still waiting to receive water,” he said.
Cllr Hove said these technical challenges often result in water being cut off earlier than scheduled.
“What causes water cuts before the agreed time is the problems that we have. Sometimes there may also be faults at the supply dams or in Magwegwe. But by right, water should be available for those three days,” he said.
Residents, however, say the situation requires urgent intervention. They are calling on authorities to review the shedding schedule and upgrade infrastructure to ensure a consistent supply.
While dam levels have improved, officials say any decision to extend supply hours must be guided by long-term sustainability.
“As for increasing hours, we are still looking into that to see by how many hours we should increase, because nine of our dams have spilled,” Cllr Hove said.
He said engineers base their decisions on long-term projections rather than current dam levels.
“When engineers calculate, they check whether water will be sufficient for the next 24 months. They predict what will happen if it does not rain, for example in December, and whether people will still have water in January the following year,” he said.
“They measure whether Bulawayo is safe to have water up to 2027. If they see that we are not safe, they implement water rationing so that we do not consume all the water and run out.”
Despite the current challenges, Cllr Hove said there were prospects for improvement.
“The situation is going to improve because reports show there has been a significant increase in dam levels,” he said.
Residents say they will continue pressing for reduced water shedding hours and improved service delivery to reflect the recent gains in water reserves.
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