Claude Manzi, a franchisee of Jibu Rwanda in Huye District, Southern Province sells at least 4,000 litres of distilled water every day. When he started out in 2016, he sold less than 50 litres. To him, the demand for purified drinking water is ever-growing. Middle-class Rwandans, Manzi observes, have developed a positive attitude towards wellbeing: quality, convenience, and cost. According to Yvette Kayitesi, a resident of Kimironko, boiling water to drink for a family of five is cumbersome, expensive, and time-consuming. It took her at least 30 minutes to boil five litres of water using charcoal and a wait of about two hours for it to cool off. She repeated the same process almost every day. “It was very time consuming and expensive,” Kayitesi said in an interview at the Jibu refill station in Kimironko. She has now been drinking “safe water” since 2018, a decision she says has reduced expenses. “I do not regret because I saved money and time but also have my children drink safe water,” she said. By going for distilled water, Kayitesi saves 150 minutes every day, 75 hours a month, and 21 days a year of preparing boiled water to drink. Financially, drinking water cost her a daily Rwf300 of charcoal. With Jibu Water, Kayitesi refills her 20-litre bottle five times a month on average with each refill costing Rwf1500. So roughly, by preferring bottled water over boiled, she is able to save around Rwf1500 every month. But money and time are not her top priorities. “My family must drink clean water because I care a lot for their safety but also I like having what I need conveniently,” Kayitesi said. “When the water runs out, I can ask the househelp to get another in a few minutes. Even when I am not around, I can call the nearby sellers who deliver at my home.” Darlington Kabatende, Managing Director at Jibu Rwanda reiterates boiling water is costlier. “When someone tells you that boiling water is expensive, at first you do not pick it up but when you look at the numbers and the time and the diseases, you ask yourself ‘why do I have to boil water?” Since it was started in 2012, Jibu Water has distributed over 174 million litres of purified water to urban dwellers who are the focus market at the moment. The company is increasingly penetrating neighbourhoods enabling clients to get Jibu Water within a five-minute walk with plans for continued penetration across neighbourhoods. “Jibu Water is widely popular here,” said Theopiste Maxime Dunia, a reseller of Jibu Water products in Gisozi. Jibu Water has put out a variety of packages including one that features a tap that one uses without needing a dispenser. Jibu Water has been licensed by regulators such as the Rwanda Standards Board RSB and the Foods and Drugs Authority (FDA) thus strictly follows health and hygiene regulations. Jibu Rwanda worker filling drinking bottled water at Huye branch. / Courtesy Jibu Rwanda has gradually grown since establishment in 2012 and the community has absorbed its products. And it attributes the growth to a “unique” model of operation.
