R400bn needed to rescue South Africa’s failing municipal water infrastructure

Mapaballo Borotho

The Department of Water and Sanitation says R400 billion is needed to repair and upgrade failing municipal water infrastructure.
Gauteng continues to experience severe water shortages due to infrastructure strain and high consumption driven by population growth.
Rand Water will introduce soft restrictions and load shifting, while the City of Johannesburg has apologised to residents.

At least R400 billion will be required to repair and upgrade municipal water infrastructure, according to Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina.

This comes as Gauteng residents continue to grapple with ongoing water shortages, with some communities in and around Johannesburg reporting that they have been without water for weeks.

Parts of Johannesburg and Tshwane also remained without water this week following an explosion at the Zuikerbosch Water Treatment Plant, which supplies water to three metros in Gauteng.

“We must be honest about the scale of the challenges and the funding required. At the local government level, at least R400 billion is needed to repair and upgrade water infrastructure. Clearly, that amount is not currently available in the fiscus,” Majodina said during a media briefing on Wednesday.

Majodina attributed the high water consumption in Gauteng municipalities to rapid population growth. Her sentiments echo those of Rand Water, which on Saturday said residents in Johannesburg and Tshwane are consuming water above the normal rate.

“There is significant overconsumption of water in Gauteng due to a growing population, both in formal and informal settlements. In this area, many hijacked buildings are occupied and use water services for free,” she said.

She warned that the deteriorating water infrastructure is placing severe strain on the system.

“At present, the system is severely overburdened, and any system under such strain is at risk of collapse,” Majodina cautioned.

In response, Rand Water will implement soft restrictions and load shifting to allow depleted reservoirs to recover. This will involve limiting supply from reservoirs in Gauteng, North West and Mpumalanga that currently have sufficient water, to support struggling systems in Johannesburg and Tshwane.

Meanwhile, the Executive Mayor of Johannesburg has apologised to residents for the ongoing water challenges in the metro.