In the last four months of last year, between August and December, Ghana lost over GH¢5 million to illegal water connections, according to the Managing Director of Ghana Water Limited (GWL).

He made these revelations during an interview with Citi TV’s Bernard Avle on Tuesday, January 13. According to him, his outfit, in collaboration with National Security, embarked on what he described as the National Revenue Enhancement Taskforce operation, to clamp down on unauthorised water use.

Following the operation, GWL uncovered an alarming water theft, particularly in urban cities like Accra, which consumes the most of the water produced by the nation’s water supply company. It was discovered that illegal connections valued at approximately GH¢5.5 million were made within just four months.

“Within the three to four months, the estimated bill amounted to about GH¢5.5 million, he said.

The task force caught some sachet water factories that were stealing water by connecting illegally to the water system, and some businesses that were being charged as domestic entities instead of commercial users.

Also, some consumers have installed bypasses, i.e., setups or pipes that avoid the water meter, resulting in significant revenue losses for the utility company.

According to the Managing Director, GWL has so far recovered a little over GH¢1.3 million from the illegal connections identified between August and December. He added that the company’s legal department has begun processes to prosecute offenders, warning that culprits will be taken to court to deter future violations.

“...and we have recovered a little over GH¢1.3 million. The legal department is pursuing the cases in court,” he added.

In an intensified effort, the MD noted that GWL has engaged the National Security to triple the task force team, from 3-12 to expedite the detection and clamping down on the theft

“With the work of the three taskforce teams, non-revenue water dropped from 52 per cent in January to 49.4 % by November. That is encouraging, so we have engaged National Security to expand the teams to 12.

In a related development, late last year, GWL in the Eastern Region arranged for 15 defaulting customers to appear in court in a few days. This formed part of the company’s large-scale legal campaign to recover more than GHC32 million owed by long-term defaulters. The debt, the nation’s water supply insists, undermines the effectiveness of their operations and improves water service delivery.

Ing. Paul C. Akpanya, Regional Chief Manager of Ghana Water Ltd. (Eastern Region), made this statement on Tuesday, December 9, in Koforidua, Eastern Region, during the launch of GWCL’s large-scale legal campaign to recover over GHC32 million owed by long-term defaulters.

According to him, the 15 defaulters fell under Phase One of the campaign, with more rigorous and lawful measures expected to be adopted in the coming days to retrieve the debts.

“We will go the extra mile within the remit of the law to recover every arrear owed the company. This is essential for sustaining our operations and improving service delivery to the public,” he said.

GWL’s legal team said more names will be added as the campaign intensifies, targeting customers who have ignored repeated reminders, accumulated long-term arrears, or continued to refuse payment even after disconnection.

The action also covers individuals and businesses that have opted to rely on alternative water sources, such as boreholes and wells, without settling their outstanding bills.

The first batch of cases filed includes a mix of commercial and residential customers:

Jilcom (Suhum Roundabout Shell Station), Petroleum & Construction Ltd., Constance Baafi, Ebenezer Larbi Opare, Yomboi EA Adu, Dora James Okyere, KAMA Group of Companies (Regional Director of Health), Paulina Donkor, Richard Boadu, Felicia Okyere Darko, F. A. Mpare, Taylor Posiah & Oduro, Patrick Ernest Obeng, Kwame.

This is not the first time Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) has threatened or taken legal action against defaulters. The company has a history of warning customers and even announcing plans to prosecute defaulters as far back as 2023 and 2024, before the current campaign this December 2025.

In April 2023, GWCL issued a public warning that it will prosecute defaulting consumers who fail to settle their debts. The company stated that outstanding arrears were undermining its operations and that legal action was inevitable if payments were not made.

Fast forward exactly a year later, 2024, the water supplier issued another warning announcing that it would publish the names of defaulting customers by the end of May 2024 if they failed to pay. Officials stressed that if this measure failed, they would not hesitate to initiate legal proceedings against debtors.

Meanwhile, GWCL’s naming approach is similar to that of BoG’s in dealing with loan defaulters.

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) announced a ‘name and shame’ approach to promote responsible borrowing among wilful loan defaulters in a new directive. The financial institution announced this in a formal directive issued to all regulated financial institutions on August 14.

In the new directive, the Bank of Ghana instructed all regulated financial institutions to publish the names of individuals who deliberately refuse to repay loans (wilful loan defaulters), despite having the means, twice a year in national newspapers and on their websites.

“All banks and other regulated lenders will be required to publish the names of such defaulters twice a year, on June 30 and December 31, in at least two national newspapers and on their official websites, using a format provided by the BoG.”

These measures form part of BoG’s latest regulatory actions to curb rising non-performing loans (NPLs) and reduce risks to the profitability, liquidity, and solvency of the banking sector. The central bank has already notified all regulated financial institutions of the directives and published explanatory notes for the public.

Also, not only will the names of the defaulters be published, but they will also be barred from getting any loans from any accredited financial institution for up to about half a decade.

“People in Ghana who deliberately refuse to repay loans… could soon be banned from borrowing from any licensed bank or financial institution for up to five years.” Borrowers who default on more than two occasions will face a five-year credit ban.

“Borrowers listed as wilful defaulters on two or more occasions within ten years will face a mandatory five-year ban, or longer if the calculated prohibition period exceeds that duration,” it added. The restrictions also target directors of companies found to have engaged in fund diversion, misrepresentation, falsified accounts, or fraudulent transactions.

“Directors of companies that are wilful defaulters, where RFIs have identified siphoning/diversion of funds, misrepresentation, falsification of accounts, and fraudulent transactions with the directors’ consent or connivance, shall also be deemed wilful defaulters and prohibited from accessing credit for the same period as the defaulting company,” it said.