By Obinwa Chikaodili
The Anambra State Urban Water Assets Holding Corporation (ASUWAHC) on Aug.10 has commenced the strengthening of its Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) to improve customer relations, accountability and water service delivery across the state.
The initiative, championed by the Officer-in-Charge of the corporation, Mrs Emmanuella N. Okafor, followed an oversight engagement by the Ministry of Power, which identified the need for a more structured system for receiving, processing and resolving complaints from customers and other stakeholders.
The strengthened GRM is designed not only to record complaints but also to provide management with useful information for identifying recurring challenges, addressing service gaps and improving operational efficiency.
The Customer Care Unit, headed by Mrs Ngozi Obijagwam, will coordinate the mechanism by receiving and registering complaints, referring them to relevant departments, monitoring their resolution and ensuring that outcomes are communicated and properly documented.
A dedicated GRM register will be introduced and maintained by the Customer Care Unit to provide a clear and traceable record of complaints and their resolution status.
The register will capture details including the complainant’s name and location, date and time of the complaint, nature of the complaint, responsible department, corrective action taken and remarks.
Under the mechanism, complaints will be received and registered, acknowledged, screened and categorised before investigation and appropriate resolution or corrective action.
The process will also cover communication of outcomes to complainants, closure and documentation of cases, as well as periodic reporting and review to identify areas requiring further attention.
Okafor has directed the Customer Care Unit to procure the dedicated GRM record book and commence systematic documentation in line with the prescribed format.
The initiative is expected to strengthen ASUWAHC’s responsiveness to customer concerns while providing management with feedback for addressing recurring operational challenges and improving service delivery.
It also reinforces the role of the Customer Care Unit as a link between the corporation and its customers and supports ASUWAHC’s commitment to reliable, transparent and customer focused water services across Anambra State.
Obinwa Chikaodili is of the Ministry of Information and Value Reformation, Anambra State
