OUR urges stronger coordination, long-term planning for water sector

The Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) is calling for stronger coordination, long-term planning and accountable investment across Jamaica’s water sector, warning that these measures are critical to improving service delivery and building resilience amid increasing climate and operational challenges.

The call was made during an OUR public education webinar on Wednesday, titled ‘Jamaica's Water Sector at a Crossroads: Regulation, Resilience and the Road Ahead’, as the island faces a severe drought and the prospect of tougher water restrictions.

OUR Director of Regulation, Policy, Monitoring and Enforcement, Duane Rowe, said Jamaica must better connect planning, financing and the experience of customers.

“Jamaica has established sector governance framework, institutions and instruments, but service remains uneven. We need to connect planning and financing more closely to what customers experience at the tap and on their bills,” Rowe said.

He also called for umbrella legislation to strengthen coordination among the agencies responsible for the sector.

“Such legislation could clarify stakeholders’ responsibility, address gaps in the current framework and require coordination, including information sharing and joint planning,” he said.

The call comes as Water Minister Matthew Samuda warns that some communities could face day-on, day-off water supplies within the next two weeks if rainfall forecasts do not improve.

More than 100 National Water Commission systems are currently being affected by the drought, with the Hermitage Dam at about 40 per cent capacity and the Mona Reservoir at just under 34 per cent.

NWC Acting Vice-President of Operations, Dr Phillippa Campbell-Francis, said 107 systems were affected by drought conditions as of Wednesday, with the agency monitoring 150 systems.

“We have been recommissioning our resting wells. We have been trucking water, and we’ve been also pumping in areas where you would have been gravity feeding before,” she said.

The NWC is also pursuing an islandwide programme aimed at reducing non-revenue water – water lost through leaks, illegal connections, theft and other unbilled uses – from about 70 per cent to 30 per cent.

Campbell-Francis said the 11-year programme will involve an initial year of auditing, five years of infrastructure works and another five years focused on maintenance.

The OUR said national non-revenue water declined from 75.1 per cent in 2021 to 73.4 per cent in 2025, but Rowe noted that the losses continue to affect operational efficiency, financial sustainability and reliability.

Meanwhile, the NWC says major infrastructure projects, including the Rio Cobre Water Treatment Plant, Western Water Resilience Improvement Project and Greater Mandeville Water Supply Project, are being advanced to improve reliability.

“The NWC is serious about ensuring that our customers are served during this time and also to ensure that we are building resilience for the future,” Campbell-Francis said.

The Rio Cobre plant is expected to provide 15 million gallons of water daily to the Corporate Area and sections of St Andrew when it becomes operational next year.

The Water Resources Authority also raised concerns about declining water levels in some major freshwater systems and called for continued investment in science, research and monitoring to support evidence-based management of the country’s water resources.

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