The City of Cape Town’s Water and Sanitation Department will be conducting its annual water service quality survey for the next three months.

The intention of the survey is to indicate to the city the level of service satisfaction among its communities, as well as the respective service disciplines that require improvement.

Devnomics has been appointed to conduct the research survey in eight districts across the city, namely: South Peninsula, Tygerberg/Bellville, Khayelitsha, Helderberg/Kuils River, Mitchells Plain, Kraaifontein/Blaauwberg, Central Cape Town and Klipfontein, to be concluded in November 2014.

The survey will be conducted in two ways — either telephonically or face-to-face by survey staff who will be visiting the respective survey areas. The survey sample will include 1 000 formal settlement residents, 600 informal settlement residents and 300 businesses. They will also assess the amount of water that is used on these premises.

“The city falls within a water scarce region and this exercise will provide us with a better understanding of where we can continue to improve on our services. Furthermore it will equip the city with the necessary information on water consumption patterns and behaviour,” said the city’s Mayoral Committee Member for Utility Services, Cllr Ernest Sonnenberg.

This survey forms part of the Water and Sanitation Department’s customer service charter, ensuring that the city continues to provide a top quality service and product to its residents.

“We want to remain the best water service provider in the country. This can only be achieved by working together with our residents and through ongoing dialogue. Surveys such as this one assist us in continually improving our services and in refining our processes. Furthermore, it may assist us in saving more water and it puts the customers — our residents — at the centre of all our actions,” said Councillor Sonnenberg.