‘We do not want prepaid water meters’

THE air was thick with frustration and unease as Glen View 1 residents  emerged from a day’s meeting recently (March 30, 2026) deliberating the Harare City Council’s controversial decision to install pre-paid water meters, without consulting

A similar situation arose in the nearby suburb — Budiriro 3 — a day later, where residents voiced strong opposition, specifically given the widespread lack of piped water in many Harare City Council-managed urban communities.

With Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) present at both meetings, the controversial project, funded by a US$400 million loan from China, has left many Zimbabweans feeling betrayed by the local authority’s failure to protect the constitutional right to safe, clean water.

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