South Africa’s water provision authorities have improved access to one of the most critical components of sustainable socioeconomic development and the eradication of poverty – water.
The country had “done a lot” in harnessing water resources in support of its socioeconomic development efforts, Trade and Industry Deputy Minister Elizabeth Thabethe said this week.
Speaking at the Zimbabwe Water Resources and Infrastructure Investment Summit, in Bulawayo, she commented that the most recent census had revealed that 91% of the population have access to improved water sources and 79% have access to improved sanitation.
“The improvement is the result of the country’s 15 water provision authorities, including local and district local municipalities, [and was] driven by the Millennium Development Goals, climate change, an improved framework for government and financing,” Thabethe explained.
South Africa was widely known as being water scarce and held the position as the thirtieth-driest country worldwide.
She noted that water should be at the “core of the green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication”, and recommitted South Africa to strengthening cooperation with neighbouring countries in developing water resources that are sustainable.
It was also important to source skills across government, the private sector and civil society, while building capacity to manage water resources effectively and efficiently, as human capital, governance and leadership development were identified as some of the challenges in ensuring effective and efficient water resource management, she concluded.