Examining Non-Revenue Water and Identifying Its Root Causes in Debre Markos Town, Ethiopia

NRW poses significant challenges for water utility institutions worldwide, impacting sustainable access to potable water and the financial viability of utility operations. This issue is particularly severe for water utilities in developing countries, like Ethiopia. This research aimed to examine NRW and identify its root causes specifically for the Debre Markos Water Utility. Data collection involved a desk review, field observations, and semi-structured key-informant interviews, which included both open and closed-ended questions. The research findings indicated that the average NRW was estimated at 35.94%. The impact assessment revealed that NRW had a significant negative effect on both the water utility and its customers. The study found that leakage and its triggers, theft, lack of NRW components awareness, infrastructure development, poor data handling practices, a low number of gate valves, great distances from master control points, inaccurate water meters, and failure to utilize the latest water meter technology were the main root causes of NRW. Therefore, the water utility should have an awareness of NRW components and develop appropriate reduction strategies. Additionally, the utility should adopt the latest technologies in water supply components and implement robust scientific investigation and monitoring mechanisms, supported by a legal framework, to recover the revenue lost.