The Department of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation (DHSWS) hopes to tackle the significant obstacles facing the water sector in South Africa through the implementation of its long-awaited National Water and Sanitation Master Plan (NWSMP).

There is an urgent need to focus attention, and to spend ‘resources’, on maintaining current infrastructure, securely guarding water sources and creating awareness of the necessity to look after rivers, to harvest rain and care for the environment, says Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu.

“Our water security can only be guaranteed by a combination of a great game plan; smart technology and know-how; superb human capital; great research and information systems; a sound legislative and policy environment; a highly functional and coordinated institutional ecosystem; and a water-wise South Africa.”

The master plan sets out nearly 100 key immediate, short-term and future-thinking action steps, based on “institutions, investments and information”, in an effort to address systemic and infrastructural challenges to secure continuous and uninterrupted water supply.

Some of the key actions include reducing water demand and increasing supply; redistributing water for transformation; regulating the water sector; improving raw water quality; and protecting and restoring ecological infrastructure.

It also addresses the ‘enabling’ requirements of the sector, such as the institutional and legal arrangements for implementation, funding requirements and models, and monitoring and evaluation models, as well as the creation of effective water-sector institutions, managing data and information, building capacity, ensuring financial sustainability, amending legislation where required and enhancing research, development and innovation.

The document outlines immediate interventions, such as infrastructure investment and maintenance; enhancing the capacity of municipalities, the DHSWS and its agencies; and rapid licensing of water use.

The establishment of catchment management agencies at local level is under way and legislation to enable their establishment is already in place, while the process to transform the water boards into regional utilities that can act as water service providers is continuing.

“We will establish a National Water Resources and Services Authority to finance, develop, manage and operate national water resource infrastructure and sanitation – the large infrastructure on which the country’s main centres depend,” Sisulu adds.

The DHSWS and the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure have teamed up to deal with ageing infrastructure and new build projects, along with an intended ‘war on leaks’ to reverse what is a significant waste of water, says Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia de Lille.

Government has invested in several water resource infrastructure projects aligned with the NWSMP, such as the Lesotho Highland Water Project Phase 2, and the De Hoop and Clanwilliam dams.

“We are expediting a review of all current infrastructure projects,” she continues.

The plan will cost about R898-billion over the next ten years, with an expected shortfall of R333-billion.