Editorial: Water must be 2025’s political priority

South Africans throughout the country — including its biggest metros — go into the festive season unsure whether they will have water for the duration of the holiday period.

Johannesburg is in the grip of another water crisis in the middle of the heatwave — an almost annual catastrophe — while residents of some parts of South Durban have had none of the precious liquid in their taps for the past four weeks.

The tourism industry is holding its breath, hoping taps will not be dry when the guests arrive, and that the failure of the sewerage systems will not result in the closure of beaches along our coastline.

South Africa’s water system is broken, the result of corruption, poor planning, inadequate municipal resources and sabotage. The situation is dire, and seemingly getting worse.

Some progress had been made under the previous water and sanitation minister, Senzo Mchunu, in developing a strategy to deal with the water crisis, but these initiatives appear to have run aground under the current minister, Pemmy Majodina.

Leadership has gone missing at local government level, along with the coordination between tiers of government that marked Mchunu’s tenure. 

Majodina has been silent during the current water crisis, another reminder that she occupies the position simply because of her position in the ANC, and not because she has an ability to ensure that South Africans have water.

The solution to South Africa’s water crisis does not require another political deployment.

It requires the appointment of a minister with the background, skills, energy and vision, along with the gravitas — and presidential backing — to bring mayors and MECs into line while implementing a national strategy.

This is not impossible.

When President Cyril Ramaphosa created the electricity ministry last March and appointed Kgosientsho Ramokgopa to head it, South Africa was in the grip of an energy crisis that had lasted almost two decades and had brought the economy to its knees.

Less than two years later, Eskom is well on the road to repair, a long-term energy plan is in place and load-shedding appears to be a thing of the past.

The water crisis is severe, but it is not unfixable. The blueprint is there — what is required is the political will to make it work.