THE SUSTAINABILITY ISSUE | VOLUME 2 | 2020
FOREWORD
South Africa’s water crisis is a
living reality The water-scarcity situation in South Africa has received increasing attention in recent times, with communities at the receiving end of the crisis. By Mmaphefo Thwala*
T
he social impacts have been felt at the household level, as water is a basic need for livelihoods (including drinking, cooking, cleaning and personal hygiene). The past decade has been clouded by recurring water-related service disruptions and protests in various municipal jurisdictions. Water shortages in the Ngqushwa, Maluti a Phofung, Mbombela, Greater Giyani, Sol Plaatje, Sekhukhune, Greater Taung and Polokwane municipalities are among many well-known cases. The recent Western Cape drought bore evidence to South Africa’s water reality, receiving worldwide attention given the socio-economic importance of the province. Sadly, other provinces (particularly the Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and Limpopo) have faced persistent drought, with residents living in a silent ‘day zero’ situation, including a constant lack of water as the daily norm. Failed water service delivery projects in Limpopo (Giyani Bulk Water Supply Project) and KwaZulu-Natal (Jozini Bulk Water Supply Project) are key examples of the country’s water governance and implementation challenges, attributed to factors such as mismanagement and capacity constraints within water authorities. Authorities are also faced with making provision for rising water demands
Mmaphefo Thwala started her career in the water industry at the Department of Water and Sanitation, where she worked for 10 years
driven by increasing population and rapid urbanisation. The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 saw these disparities heightened and exacerbated. Access to adequate water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) has been emphasised by scientists worldwide and the World Health Organization as the first line of defence against the virus. Campaigns to curb the spread of the virus focus on people regularly washing their hands with both water and soap. The pandemic Water user further exposed South Africa’s inequalities education, in access to water, as many communities awareness and action in are still without running water and are subsequently disadvantaged in terms of the form of water use their defence against Covid-19. efficiency are key In the National Water and Sanitation Master prerequisites for real Plan, launched in 2019 by the Department of behavioural change.” Water and Sanitation (DWS), the challenges to the water sector are attributed to factors such as inadequate investment and maintenance of water infrastructure, inefficient pollution control measures and deteriorating water quality. The situation in South Africa is exacerbated by rainfall and subsequent run-off patterns that are highly variable both geographically and seasonally, while the country receives roughly
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