Durban - One of the KwaZulu-Natal district municipalities which were recently flagged by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) for having water challenges that are a potential human rights violation by local government during a week-long public inquiry in Durban, has given itself a three-year time frame to fix the crisis.
The vast and largely rural King Cetshwayo district municipality, which is headquartered in Richards Bay on the North Coast and includes local municipalities like Mhlathuze, Nkandla, Mthonjaneni and Umlalazi, says while the task is daunting, it would meet the target.
Speaking to IOL after launching a crucial R28 million scheme to supply over 1000 households and businesses in eastern parts of Nkandla on Monday, the district mayor, Thami Ntuli, said at least 30% of their area is without a clean and reliable water supply.
Among the areas facing the worst water crisis are the rural parts of Nkandla, Eshowe and Melmoth (around Obuka) while most urban parts like Mhlathuze have water.
However, in recent years, urban areas like Esikhawini township in Richards Bay, uMfolozi and the town of Melmoth have faced water cuts because of ageing infrastructure, prompting wildcat protests by angry residents.
But Ntuli is adamant that the issue would be tackled within the three-year period they have set for themselves. He said the money needed (even though not sufficient) has already been allocated and it is now about implementing their water plan.
“We have a plan to tackle the long-standing water issue in our district and we shall win in that regard. Right now the percentage of (people with) access to clean water within the district is sitting at 70.3%.
"The above percentage is comprised of water supplied through yard connections, standpipes, boreholes and springs. Water tanker supply is excluded from the 70.3%.
"What we can say is that we have set ourselves a target of three years to make sure that the issue of clean and reliable water in our district is history,” Ntuli told IOL.
The other KwaZulu-Natal district municipalities the SAHRC flagged for failing to provide clean water are Ugu, which is anchored in Port Shepstone; Uthukela (Ladysmith), Zululand (Ulundi) and Umgungundlovu, which is anchored in Pietermaritzburg.
While launching the new water scheme in Nkandla on Monday, Ntuli justified the R6 million spent on the Ngomankulu community water scheme in the western part of Nkandla.
The launch of the scheme last month drew social media ridicule and questions about whether the money spent was worth what the district municipality got out of the investment.
He said while pictures taken on the day only showed him opening a borehole, there was more to the scheme.
He said the project includes pumps, drilled boreholes and storage facilities, and the money spent tallied with what they got.
“Even though the water comes from a borehole, there is a package plan where the water is taken to (storage facilities), stored and purified so that it is ready for consumption.
“From there, the water is carried through a steel pipe to a reservoir located on top of a mountain. From there you find the network (of pipes) which then takes the water to various households for consumption.
"So, there is value for that water project even though there were murmurs ... when I opened it,” Ntuli said.
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