The government approved Sunday the Water Authority’s recommendations to restructure water and sanitation tariffs for household use for 2023-2029 to achieve water security and financial sustainability. The Water Authority’s debt currently stands at JOD 2.3 billion, and it is feared that it will go as high as JOD 4 billion by 2030 if there is no response to address the increasing burden, knowing that the total cost of one cubic meter of water is 220 piasters. The government supports different consumption segments at varying rates, averaging 64 per cent. The plan included a shift from issuing the water and sanitation invoice from quarterly to monthly for all sectors, starting from the September invoice, according to the currently approved tariff rate and without changes until 12/1/2023. The plan adopts an increasing block tariff for water pricing with seven blocks: The first block is from 0 to 6 m3, the from 7-12 m3, the third from 13-18 m3, the fourth from 19-24 m3, the fifth from 25-30 m3, the sixth from 31-42 m3 and the seventh for consumption exceeding 42 m3. The plan to restructure water and sanitation tariffs included a gradual annual increase in the water and sanitation tariffs for household consumption, with an average increase of 4.6 per cent, starting from 12/1/2023 until 12/1/2028 to cover the costs of operation and maintenance gradually by 2030. The new tariff will begin to be implemented as of next December and will be reflected in the bill for January 2024.

Source: Jordan News Agency