The Department of Water and Sanitation is one of the departments of the

South African government The Republic of South Africa is a parliamentary republic with three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary, operating in a parliamentary system. Legislative authority is held by the Parliament of South Africa. Executive authori ...

. It is responsible for the state of water and sanitation in South Africa. In May 2009, following the election of Jacob Zuma, the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry was divided, with the forestry responsibility being transferred to the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. The Department of Water and Sanitation was established in May 2014 by President

Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan name Msholozi, and was a former anti-aparth ...

with former Gauteng Premier

Nomvula Mokonyane Nomvula Paula Mokonyane (born 28 June 1963) is a South African politician who is currently the First Deputy Secretary-General of the African National Congress (ANC). She was the first female Premier of Gauteng from 2009 to 2014 and subsequentl ...

becoming the first Minister (26 May 2014 – 28 January 2018). She was replaced by

Gugile Nkwinti Gugile Ernest Nkwinti (born 18 December 1946) is a South African politician, previously serving in the Cabinet of South Africa as the Minister of Water and Sanitation and before as the Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform. Education an ...

Corruption and incapacitation

The department has developed a reputation for fraud, corruption and procurement irregularities. The 2019/20 financial year report noted R10-billion had been squandered by the department, and the 2020-21 financial report has found another R10-billion in irregular expenditure. As a result of this widespread, large-scale and persistent financial ill-discipline, the department has stated it cannot fund necessary water infrastructure projects. A report by Corruption Watch and the Water Integrity Network in 2020 noted that corruption in the Department of Water and Sanitation exacerbates water shortages in South Africa, as are currently happening in the

Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha. The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...

Water security

In 2022 the department revealed that almost all

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

had aging and dysfunctional water infrastructure. Poor maintenance and operations at local government level caused an average 40% (26%-60%) of water to be lost before it reached end users.

References

External links

Department of Water and Sanitation website
Water supply and sanitation in South Africa

Water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...

Water Affairs

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Ministries established in 1912 Water resource management in South Africa Water in South Africa 1912 establishments in South Africa {{SouthAfrica-gov-stub