Water on Tap

Malawi innovator develops an intelligent tap that improves life in rural areas

- Edwin Nyirongo

Catherine Tembo has no water in her house and heads off to the nearby kiosk with her bucket where she decides to get 10 liters. Tembo swipes her smartcard on the intelligent tap machine which dispenses the exact amount.

“It is cheaper [and much more convenient] compared to what we are used to do,” Tembo said, as she heads back to her rural home in the Central Region District of Lilongwe in Malawi.

24/7 affordable water

A visit to several kiosks in the district shows how excited women are with the use of smartcards to draw water. Funny Kananji from the traditional authority of Chimutu in Lilongwe said before smartcards came into use, they were spending a lot on water.

“Previously, when we drew water, we were charged per bucket. But with the smartcards, we pay half the price for the same amount of water [and can choose exactly how much water we want, anytime we want]. This leaves us with some money over to buy other necessities,” said Kananji.

Another smartcard user Beatrice Gomani agrees the hi-tech system is convenient and fast to use.

“Previously, for example, when you woke up early to draw water, you would have to wait for the kiosk attendant to arrive, as you could only draw the water when they were there to supervise transactions. We sometimes had situations when the attendant left to attend to urgent family matters [and so we couldn’t get water that day].

“But with the smartcard, there is no need for supervision as you draw water according to your need. It is an innovation that has helped us [a lot] in rural areas,” said Gomani.