Question NW2401 to the Minister of Water and Sanitation
04 August 2023 - NW2401
Ceza, Mr K to ask the Minister of Water and Sanitation
What (a) is the breakdown of the costs of hired water tankers in the 44 district municipalities, (b) are the time frames for sustainable potable water distribution and (c) steps of intervention have been put in place to eliminate the water tanker mafia?
Reply:
a) The costs for water tanks that are hired by municipalities are borne by the municipalities as Water Service Authorities. DWS does not have this information.
b) The StatsSA General Household Survey (GHS) showed that 89% of households have access to operational services, while reliability is only at 63%.
The Department is embarking on the development Five Year Reliable Water and Sanitation Services Delivery Implementation Plans for all 44 DMS that will, after completion, produce a pipeline of projects for each WSA with the associated schedule and costing. National grant funding programmes will then be aligned with these needs.
Currently, the Department is spearheading the progressive implementation of various water and sanitation projects through the various programmes such as the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) and Water Services Infrastructure Grant (WSIG). It is estimated that the water and sanitation sector requires R90 billion per year for the next 10 years in order to achieve 100% reliable water and sanitation service provision in South Africa.
c) Water tankering is meant to be a temporary measure utilised by municipalities to ensure that communities are provided with water where there are water supply interruptions resulting from disasters such as floods or droughts or other temporary challenges. However, in many instances, the use of tankers to supplement inadequate water supply by municipalities has become part of the ‘normal’ system to supply communities with water. In some instances, there are allegations that infrastructure is vandalised to facilitate continuation of business opportunities via provision of water tankers to municipalities. Municipalities have been advised by the DWS secure water infrastructure and prevent vandalism and theft of infrastructure which causes water supply interruptions.
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