Abstract
The increased availability of the internet of things has allowed technologies available to municipal
service delivery to develop. Several municipalities in South Africa have adopted the strategy and goal
to upgrade and transform to Smart Cities on the back of these developments. An observation in
practice pertaining to water meters has led to the proposition that these upgrades are lethargic with
current technology being replaced with similar technology.
This study set out to determine the status quo on the adoption of advanced water meters in South
Africa compared to other countries as well as the reasons for the current situation. This snapshot of
the unique situation in South Africa leads to a proposed roadmap to deliver on the strategy and
goals of municipalities to become Smart Cities in the aspect of water provision.
It was found that South Africa have a relatively low rate of adoption of advanced water meters even
though they were one of the first countries globally to adopt these meters in the form of pre-paid
water meters on a broader scale. The reasons for this was found to be rooted in a comparatively low
per capita GDP combined with the dismal outlook in terms of municipal financial management.
Inherent risks and the involvement and behaviour of consumers compound the root causes and
debilitate the upgrade to advanced water metering. These issues are addressed through selected
theories and principles in the fields of business management, financial management, human
psychology, systems engineering and water conservation and are summarized and combined in
order to indicate the direction of planning and level of management collaboration required to
enhance the adoption and effective use of advanced water metering in South Africa.
Case studies and localised research on the adoption of advanced water meters in South Africa have
previously been conducted but this research looks at the issues affecting the adoption of advanced
water metering technology holistically, in a South African context.
M.Ing. (Engineering Management)