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Mashudu Netsianda, Senior Reporter
THE prevailing water crisis in Beitbridge has created an opportunity for a new crop of entrepreneurs in the border town commonly known as “waterpreneurs”.

These emerging entrepreneurs are cashing in on the worsening water crisis by selling the precious liquid to thirsty residents and have become an integral part of the border town’s daily economic activity.

One such enterprising “waterpreneur” is Mr Herren Sibanda (46) of Dulivhadzimu suburb. He started off as taxi driver before he quit and got employed as a shop attendant.

Realising that the money from his job wasn’t enough, Mr Sibanda ventured into the business of selling water as a side hustle.

He used to hire other people’s trucks to ferry water from various sources to consumers in high density suburbs where residents have gone for several months without water.

The Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) cut water supplies to Beitbridge Municipality over an outstanding debt of $294 million. The stalemate between the two entities has resulted in a critical water shortage in the country’s busiest border town.

After working for six months as a shop attendant, Mr Sibanda decided to quit his job and ventured into selling water on a full-time basis.

Amid an outcry from residents over the deepening water crisis, Mr Sibanda, a father of six, has seen an opportunity to create wealth and feed his family.

Just recently, he managed to buy his own truck, which he now uses to transport water to consumers.“Every day, I wake up at around 5AM and drive around the suburbs selling water. Most of the residents now know me, my truck is now popular and easy to identify and I use my car horn to signal my arrival,” said Mr Sibanda.

Mr Herren Sibanda sells up to 20 000 litres of water per day

He buys water in bulk from individuals with boreholes and fills 1 000 litre storage tanks before moving around and reselling to desperate residents.

“I sell water for R4 per 20 litres and on a day I can sell up to 20 000 litres of water. With the current water crisis, there is huge demand and business is certainly booming,” said Mr Sibanda.

“In the past I used to hire other people’s trucks before I bought mine using the proceeds from my business. I am also in the process of developing my residential stand and my children are going to school because of this business.”

“When I started this business, my major target were people who were building houses in new residential areas and I would go to the Limpopo River to fetch water and supply them. However, because of the current water crisis, I noticed that most people were now after potable water and I am now supplying households,” he said.

Mr Sibanda buys water from his suppliers for R30 per 1 000 litres. He uses a generator-powered pump to fill the containers for his consumers. Zinwa and Beitbridge Municipality have a long-standing dispute over the handling of water affairs in the border town.

Zinwa is selling bulk water to the council, which then sells treated water to the more than 70 000 residents after putting a mark-up.

Council said while they were paying Zinwa $2,5 million weekly, the situation was being worsened by some residents who are not settling their water bills resulting in the water utility cutting supplies. Zinwa installed prepaid bulk water meters to force council to settle its debt.

The latest move has seen the town getting less than 7 000 cubic meters of water weekly compared to 44 000 cubic meters it was getting. This has triggered intermittent water shortages due to limited supplies and opened up business opportunities for those with boreholes and purified water dealers. – @mashnets