THE IMPACT OF METERING AND BILLING REVENUE SYSTEMS ON REVENUE COLLECTION IN PUBLIC WATER COMPANIES
Emelda Nafula Nyongesa - Doctor of Philosophy in Finance, Department of Business Administration, School of Business and Entrepreneurship, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenya
Prof. Gregory Simiyu Namusonge - Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenya
Dr. Elisabeth Makokha Nambuswa - Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Kenya
ABSTRACT
The following specific objective guided the study: to evaluate the impact of the Metering and Billing Revenue Systems on Revenue Collection in Public Water Companies. The study was grounded in stakeholder theory and economic theory. The study adopted a mixed research design. A sample size of 500 was drawn from a target population of 1,000 respondents. A stratified sampling technique was applied. The study used questionnaires as the primary research instrument. Reliability and validity were tested using Cronbach’s alpha and the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure, respectively. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM SPSS version 20) was used for data analysis, and the results were presented in tables and graphical formats. Descriptive statistics had an average mean of 4.09 and a Standard Deviation of 0.960. Using frequency of agreement, 77.03% agreed that non-revenue water was a financial determinant of revenue collection. 6.7% of respondents were not sure. while 7.08% disagreed. Inferential statistics findings indicated a Coefficient of Determination of 0.587**, a significant level of 0.000, implying a strong positive correlation between metering and billing revenue systems and revenue collection in public water companies. A p-value of 0.000, which is less than 0.005, indicates that metering and billing revenue systems have an impact on revenue collection in public water companies. The study recommended that public water Companies should monitor and address metering and billing issues, especially meter installation, meter types, data input into the system, technological compatibility, data loggers at conversion of customer demand and supplies. The study suggests further investigations on connections of meters at service points, pressure measurements on transmission lines, and customer connection points to be done, and that the management teams should set the internal controls and risk management systems in relation to metering and billing revenue systems, and water management intensification for increased revenue collection in public water companies.