Water crisis rooted in infrastructure failures and municipal distress, says Mashatile

Deputy President Paul Mashatile has blamed the country’s water problems on ageing infrastructure and flawed reticulation systems in municipalities.

Responding to questions in parliament on Thursday, Mashatile said although the country’s dams hold significant reserves, these resources are not reaching people effectively because of a broken supply chain riddled with leaks, outdated pipelines and neglected maintenance.

“South Africa is a water scarce country, but we have water in many of our dams. The challenge is reticulation and that is what we are addressing. The water task team will ensure that these issues are addressed,” he said.

Reticulation is the network of pipes and systems that distribute water from a central source to users. 

He said reticulation problems exacerbate an already vulnerable system, often placing the most disadvantaged communities in critical situations when it comes to receiving clean water.

Many places in the Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, North West and parts of Gauteng have been affected by this, he said.

Mashatile said financially distressed municipalities don’t have resources to maintain water infrastructure, “let alone upgrade it”.

“You can scream at them and say, ‘fix the pipes and maintain infrastructure’,” he remarked, “and they will respond, ‘well, we don’t have the money’.” 

In March, a Rand Water report issued a warning about the potential interruption of water supply to troubled provinces, citing that municipalities collectively owe the utility more than R3 billion. 

According to the report, R2 billion is attributed to Gauteng councils, while Mpumalanga municipalities owe R1 billion and Free State municipalities at least R63 million. 

Mashatile and Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina have been pressing Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana for funds to tackle these structural issues. Together, they have formed a water task team to intensify efforts at the municipal level, coordinating interventions to reinforce a system riddled with gaps.

“[We have been] saying we need resources to assist municipalities to sort out the problem of water because some of the municipalities do not have a good tax base,” Mashatile said.

Godongwana had responded “very positively” to the plea. 

Mashatile said although Godongwana had given them a positive response, the water task team continues to grapple with deteriorating water infrastructure and the rise of a disturbing trend — the “water mafia”.

Mashatile explained that water mafias capitalise on crises by manipulating water shortages for profit. 

“I came across this problem with the president in the North West,” he said, where rogue water suppliers reportedly tamper with infrastructure to sell water to desperate residents.

 “As we fix this problem [and] invest properly in sound infrastructure, the mafias will not have an opportunity to survive,” he said.

He added because infrastructure in many areas is outdated, pipes and distribution networks have exceeded their operational lifespans.

The infrastructure problem, coupled with the financial strain faced by many municipalities, worsens the situation, with ratepayers and businesses default on payments, creating a chain reaction that threatens the stability of the water supply.

“We need to enforce the culture of payment so that the municipalities are able to pay the water authorities,” he said.

Mashatile advised that  a sustainable solution must go beyond financial bailouts to addressing municipal self-sufficiency and accountability.

“This culture of non-payment has become an entrenched issue impacting municipal revenues and, consequently, the services they can offer,” he said.

The deputy president said with water scarcity becoming an urgent issue in Gauteng, where leaks and high consumption rates have driven the province into a state of near-crisis, it has joined forces with other levels of government to avert further disruptions. 

The combined approach is aimed at overseeing water storage and monitoring municipal consumption levels. In particular, this team is working with municipalities to address leaks and illegal connections, problems that are depleting reserves.

The province currently operates under level one water restrictions, which could escalate to levels two and three if consumption patterns are not controlled. 

“If necessary, they may soon enforce level two water restrictions, which include a 30% supply cut and prohibitions on activities such as watering gardens and washing cars with hosepipes,” he said.

In a follow-up question, Democratic Alliance MP Stephen Moore asked Mashatile why he had not spoken to Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and the MEC for cooperative governance, Jacob Mamobolo, to intensify their efforts in response to Rand Water’s warning of the present crisis.

Mashatile responded that Majodina had already met Lesufi and the MEC, affirming that provincial officials are working closely with the national government to streamline the crisis response. 

“The minister is already there,” Mashatile said, underscoring the coordinated effort between national and provincial leaders. “Maybe your concern is that we should have done it much earlier? But we are doing it. Everyone understands the need to work with the nation to ensure we pull in the same direction.”

The deputy president said to resolve the water problem, deeper investment and policy reforms to reinforce a system that can withstand both population demands and environmental issues was required.

He added that municipalities needed to be empowered to become financially resilient, a process that depends not only on central government funding but also on establishing local accountability.