Crucial part of South Africa’s infrastructure is rapidly collapsing

South Africa’s water woes appear to be deepening, with the country’s economic hub of Gauteng facing sporadic shortages that can last for weeks in some areas. 

The primary challenge is not a shortage of water but rather the inability of the infrastructure to effectively transport it from bulk suppliers to end users.

This issue is especially pronounced in Gauteng, where water shedding has become increasingly common.

According to Dr. Sean Phillips, director-general of the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), the province loses approximately 49% of its water to leaks or illegal connections.

In several provinces, water losses surpass 50%, indicating that more than half of the water supplied by bulk providers never reaches the intended users.

This situation stems from the gradual deterioration of water infrastructure nationwide, as municipalities have failed to perform adequate maintenance.

The latest Blue Drop Report from the DWS highlights that nearly one-third of the country’s water systems are in critical condition.

A system in ‘critical condition’ requires “urgent intervention across all aspects of the water service business.”

Phillips said the only solution to this particular problem, at least in the short term, is to turn to the private sector for funding and expertise. 

He explained that municipalities are stuck in a downward spiral. They do not have enough money to conduct maintenance, and thus, leakages increase, resulting in less revenue being collected. 

While they can turn to the national government for funding grants, the scale of the problem is such that it cannot provide adequate financing. 

It is estimated that around R1 trillion will be needed first to halt the deterioration of water infrastructure in South Africa and then expand supply to meet growing demand. 

As a result, the DWS created the Water Partnership Office (WPO) in collaboration with the Development Bank of Southern Africa. 

This office supports municipalities in getting private sector companies to invest in local water infrastructure by ensuring their projects are investable. 

Phillips said the WPO should enable local governments to tap private-sector funding for water infrastructure projects while giving investors a suitable return. 

However, there is a significant problem with the private sector being involved in the provision of water, and that is its centralised nature. 

“A big question is whether increased private sector participation is good. It often allows the government to not do what it is mandated to do and avoid responsibility,” Adam said. 

By allowing local government to turn to the private sector, Adam said it could simply abdicate responsibility and pay contractors to do its job. 

This could result in water crises recurring every few years as municipalities will not have the capacity to maintian or expand their own infrastructure. 

Furthermore, individual households and businesses can only produce their own water in very specific circumstances, making it highly unlikely that they would be able to go ‘off-grid’ as they would with electricity.

Crucially, even then, they cannot adequately process, treat, and release their sewage as that is only affordable on a large scale. 

This is feedback from Executive Manager at WaterCAN Dr Ferrial Adam, who explained to 702 that the private sector has to be involved but that water cannot be decentralised to the extent electricity has. 

Adam said the private sector is already stepping in to help municipalities with funding and skills, as these are the areas which the government has prioritised. 

Some private companies have begun providing ‘packaged plants’ that can be purchased and installed within an office park or large housing development to process sewage and provide sanitation works on a smaller scale. 

Adam said that these solutions have proven attractive but are prohibitively expensive. Furthermore, the sewage still has to be released into the centralised system, meaning that the office park or housing estate is still reliant on government services. 

In terms of providing water on a utility-scale or effectively at a small scale, it is almost impossible for a private company to do so. 

Adam explained that the only real option for a private company wanting to reduce reliance on the water system is to invest in desalination, which is being done in parts of the Western Cape. 

However, this is extremely expensive, and, once again, the user remains reliant on the centralised system to process sewage and provide sanitation services.