Ramaphosa promises to tackle South Africa’s new crisis – could be worse than load shedding by SETH THORNE

[Nat Quinn]

Ramaphosa promises to tackle South Africa’s new crisis – could be worse than load shedding by SETH THORNE

President Cyril Ramaphosa has earmarked addressing South Africa’s water crisis as a top priority for government in 2025, likening the looming crisis to the crippling power shortages that brought the country’s economy to its knees.

Delivering the annual January 8 statement, a keynote address outlining the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party’s agenda for the year, Ramaphosa stressed the urgency of addressing the issue before it spirals out of control.

Speaking in Khayelitsha, Cape Town, Ramaphosa acknowledged the severe water challenges facing various parts of the country.

“Load shedding has been supplanted by the crisis of water security, which poses a similar if not greater threat to the quality of life and economic prospects of all South Africans,” said Ramaphosa.

“Indeed, water is life and sanitation is dignity,” he added.

Taps across the country often run dry thanks to, but not limited to, inadequate investment in infrastructure, corruption, the proliferation of illegal connections, water scarcity, climate change, and other inefficiencies in the system.

In Coronation’s July 2024 Correspondent, economist Marie Antelme and ESG analyst Leila Joseph say that “water security is arguably one of the most critical risks to South Africa’s social, economic, and political long-term future.”

Recent reports by the Department of Water and Sanitation — including the Green, Blue, and No Drop Reports – paint a concerning image of the current state of the provision of the essential resource, showing that at a countrywide average:

• 51% of water provided has poor to bad microbiological water quality status;

• 40.8% of water was lost due to leaks or was unaccounted for;

• 67.6% of wastewater treatments failed to adequately process sewage and other wastes.

Municipal performance in providing good-quality drinking water across South Africa has deteriorated over the past five years, from 93 “good” water supply systems in 2021 to 59 in 2024.

Additionally, according to the information provided by the minister, the performance of municipal water supply systems in the country over the past four years has been:

Year	Bad	Poor	Good
2020	544	39	70
2021	502	43	93
2022	529	53	85
2023	535	62	78
2024	491	57	59

To add insult to injury, South Africa’s water boards are owed R23.4 billion by municipalities, more than 70% of which is four months overdue.

The debt hampers their ability to maintain and upgrade ageing infrastructure at a time when municipalities, including the country’s economic hub Johannesburg, are facing severe shortages and cuts.

Another study by the department showed that “water demand is expected to sharply increase over the next 20 years while the water supply is likely to decline, therefore anticipating a projected supply deficit of 17% by 2030.”

The President promised a multi-pronged approach to tackle the water crisis, which includes:

• Empowering Water Boards: Ensuring water security across the nation will be a primary responsibility of water boards.

• Infrastructure Overhaul: Upgrading aging municipal water infrastructure is crucial to mitigate significant water losses from leaks.

• Financial Framework: Implementing a water and local financing framework that attracts private sector participation in infrastructure refurbishment, while retaining municipal ownership of water assets.

• Combating Illegal Activities: Addressing sabotage, theft, and corruption by “water tanker mafias” and cracking down on illegal water connections.

• Prioritising Informal Settlements: Accelerating plans to recognise informal settlements and provide safe and legal access to water and electricity for poor residents.

“We are confident that drawing on the lessons learnt from dealing successfully with the seemingly intractable challenge of load-shedding, we will be able to deal with this crisis,” he said.

 

source:Ramaphosa promises to tackle South Africa’s new crisis – could be worse than load shedding – BusinessTech

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