Botswana's Water Utilities Corporation (WUC) has completed the first stage of an infrastructure overhaul, installing over 33 000 smart pre-paid water meters to premises across Gaberone, and surrounding areas.
The installation began in July 2024 and was completed last month, marking a critical effort to secure the country’s limited water supply.
According to WUC, a major driver for this project is to address the loss of treated potable water before it gets billed. Current figures show that 48% of its current supply is lost every year.
The new smart meter system is designed to give WUC real-time alerts, enabling the corporation to fix major leaks quickly, thus reducing the amount of leakage.
The project was a collaborative effort involving WUC, Lesira-Teq, a vendor that provided the smart meters, and Leeroy Systems, which handled the physical installation.
Johannes Thebe, technical director, Leeroy Systems, emphasised the scale of the operation. "This project requires more than just installing hardware; it demands the meters be smoothly connected to the existing pipes and that the long-range network provides solid, real-time communication," he said.
The meters connect using LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network), a low-power, long-range wireless technology. This enables devices to send data over long distances without needing frequent battery replacements or relying on expensive infrastructure, making it suitable for widespread utility use.
The meters enable consumers to shift to a pre-paid model, which WUC says, gives end-users better control over their spending and encourages the conservation of water.
Thebe said the project’s success sets a regional benchmark for other water-scare African countries struggling to modernise their water services.
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