Question NW532 to the Minister of Water and Sanitation
13 April 2023 - NW532
Mohlala, Ms MR to ask the Minister of Water and Sanitation
What challenges has his department encountered in its efforts to eradicate the bucket system in the (a) Northern Cape and (b) Free State?
Reply:
In the Free State there are 10 202 buckets that are still to be eradicated. Contractors were appointed for the remaining seven (7) projects and contractors are currently on site. Several sections of the outfall sewer line have been completed whilst others are in progress. Work on the construction of pumpstations in the respective projects has also commenced.
Whilst the challenges are common in most projects, the Free State Bucket Eradication Programme experienced the following:
- Delays with procurement for goods and services for its Construction Unit. The Department is in the process of addressing this by putting in place a new Infrastructure Procurement Policy and Strategy.
- Interruptions by Local Business Forums demanding to be given a greater share of the work.
- Local labour disputes
- Contractual disputes between the main contractors and their subcontractors which have caused delays.
- Some projects encountered unexpected high-water tables, which resulted in a need to pump out water before work could proceed.
- Poor soil conditions requiring changes to the designs mid-construction.
- Some projects cannot be completed because the wastewater treatment works are not yet ready (in terms of functionality or capacity to receive the additional sewage). Efforts to address the Wastewater Treatment Works are underway through either procurement (Senekal) or Conditional Assessments (through DWS) to determine the extent of the work to be done on each plant. Such projects will be packaged independently for implementation.
In the Northern Cape, a new procurement process has ensued and the procurement process including the appointment of a contractor is expected to be completed by April 2023.
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