SA is a water scarce country

By Simangazo Mokale

For years we have been told that South Africa is a water scarce country. However, this warning often goes unheeded, and people continue with their daily lives, totally unconcerned about water use. The reality only hits home when communities are directly impacted as in the case right now in Gauteng.

Currently there are a number of water challenges facing the country, especially in Gauteng which has put all its municipalities under Level 1 water restrictions. Under Level 1 restrictions, businesses and residents are no longer permitted to water or irrigate gardens with a hosepipe or sprinkler system between 06:00 and 18:00. Businesses and residents are also no longer permitted to use a hosepipe to clean driveways or patios, wash vehicles with a hosepipe or fill or top up swimming pools or water features.

Similar restrictions have been implemented in other cities and towns over the years, and these are a constant reminder that water remains one of our most precious resources.

Given our precarious water situation, it is crucial that we work towards ensuring water security by protecting and managing our nation’s water resources carefully. As a nation we must get to a point where water conservation becomes a way of life.  To do so we must move beyond awareness and arrive at a point where all communities and citizens take joint action to safeguard the country’s water resources. 

According to the National Water Act of 1998 and the Water Services Act of 1997, we must ensure that the country’s water resources are protected, managed, used, developed, conserved and controlled by regulating and supporting the delivery of effective water supply and sanitation.

These two pieces of legislation place water at the centre of our development and indeed our way of life. They provided the regulatory framework for government, provinces and municipalities, along with water boards to ensure a secure supply of water. 

However, this is not enough on its own and citizens and communities are called upon to take responsibility for water and especially to report water leaks. Because of water leaks, it is estimated that approximately 70 million litres of treated, clean, drinkable water is lost daily. 

In a water scarce country such as ours this is simply not good enough. Every drop of this precious resource counts and we need to report water leaks to municipalities and fix leaks around our homes. Another simple action we can all take is to harvest rainwater which can be used for cleaning cars and gardening, instead of using a hose pipe.

Government is also working to improve our water infrastructure, and this has been given a boost by the signing of the National Water Resource Infrastructure Agency Bill into law in August this year. This law provides for the establishment of the National Water Resource Infrastructure Agency through the amalgamation of the Trans Caledon Tunnel Authority, the Water Trading Entity and the Infrastructure branch of the department.

This agency will leverage large-scale investments in national water resource infrastructure that are required to ensure that South Africa has sufficient bulk water supply now and in future. 

Projects such as this are aimed at ensuring that challenges with municipal water and sanitation service delivery are not exacerbated by a shortage of bulk water, as has been experienced in the cities of Cape Town and Nelson Mandela Bay, amongst others.
Through legislation and various reforms, we have witnessed a significant improvement in availability of water. According to Statistics South Africa Census 2023, access to water in every household has increased to over 87 percent of households in the country, access to municipal water increased from 78,4 percent in 2004 to 80,4 percent in 2023. 

Through several government initiatives including Operation Vulindlela we are working to ensure water security for everyone. Let us all play our part by saving this precious resource for ourselves and future generations.