Yvonne Ravula 
The Water Authority of Fiji says informal settlements are being considered in its long-term infrastructure planning, as concerns continue over inconsistent supply in some areas.
Chief Executive Seru Soderberg says under the Constitution, access to water is a right, and the Authority is mandated to provide connections within urban centres – including informal communities.
“So if there are informal settlements within urban centres and they need, they want to require a connection to water supply, we actually have a duty to provide water supply to them.”
WAF confirms it currently serves about 829,000 people nationwide through roughly 150,000 connections.
However, the Suva District Council of Social Services officer Isimeli Koroi says families in some informal settlements continue to face limited flow during peak morning hours and often rely on shared meters.
“So during the early peak hours in the morning, they get very limited to no water supply. So most of them, they tend to store water in the evening.”
WAF says infrastructure upgrades and new projects are ongoing to improve pressure and reliability, with informal areas now being factored into future expansion plans.
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