Majority of the residents of Juba depend on unpurified water sold by dealers | File photo

Residents of Juba have raised concerns about the high prices of water distributed by the water tanks to their respective areas.

They say the water tank owners buy the water cheaply from the processing plant and sell it expensively to the consumers.

The residents say they buy a barrel at 40 to 60 pounds, yet a barrel is sold at less than 10 pounds at the processing plant.

They also told Eye Radio that the water being sold at different prices in different areas.

“They are deciding their own prices because the city council is not following up on their work,” said one of the residents.

“They [water tank distributors] will tell you 40 or 50 SSP and if you talk about it then the drivers even fight you and no one will support you.”

Another resident from Gurei suburb said:

“In fact it affects, because sometimes I buy water today and it stays for only one or two days then it is over. With this hot weather, people drink a lot of water

“Sometimes when you want to buy water, there is no money

“But it will be okay if the price is reduced and maybe someone will benefit from it

For his part, the Director of SDI, one of the water processing plants says they sell a barrel of water cheaply to the water tankers.

“I sell a barrel at 7 pounds; 250 liters, let me emphasize this; every civilian that will come to my plant with his own barrel, I will give it to him by the price of 7 pounds,” said Mr. Eyal Fichelson.

Efforts to reach the Juba City Council were not successful.

Among other clean water projects operating in Juba are the one run by the Red Cross and the other by the USAID.