With the collapse of South Africa’s water infrastructure reaching a crisis point nationally, the Institute of Race Relations (IRR) has launched an online platform to enlist citizens’ help in tracking problems, and to channel infrastructure complaints directly to senior officials.
The IRR says in a statement that people can go to https://irr.org.za/campaigns/stop-the-leaks and upload photos and a description of what is happening with water infrastructure in their municipality. This will trigger an email being sent to the relevant person in that municipality, and will also help the IRR build up a dossier of how water infrastructure is collapsing across the country.
Says Chris Patterson, IRR researcher: “These messages to municipal officials, such as municipal managers, will go some way to improving responsiveness and accountability.”
Following the recent publication of the IRR’s Gauteng’s Water Crisis report, IRR researchers became aware of a troubling crisis across the country arising from municipalities being unable to address infrastructure concerns due to high public wage bills. Municipal budgets are being pushed past their limits, municipal workforces are ill-equipped to deal with infrastructure backlogs, and municipal governments are unresponsive. Against this background, the IRR believes that using the power of community activism will help bring accountability and improved services to those who need them most.
The IRR says: “A presentation by the Auditor-General (AG) to the Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation in August showed that South Africa lost nearly 1.74 billion kl of water in 2022/23, with the AG citing the “lack of maintenance of infrastructure” as the leading cause. This could have resulted in revenue for municipalities worth nearly R30 billion. On further inspection, the AG revealed that Water Service Authorities (WSAs) were failing in their duty to provide accurate information.”
Adds Patterson: “Water is life. South Africans have a constitutional right to water, and municipalities are failing in their duty to provide water. This has a knock-on effect on residents, who are unable to do basic chores, on businesses who rely on water to provide goods and services, and, ultimately, on the economy. Without reliable infrastructure, South Africa’s economy cannot operate and jobs are placed at risk.”
Decades of underinvestment and underspending on critical infrastructure combined with alleged corruption and criminal activity have decimated the tools South Africa needs to spur economic growth.
“The IRR aims to connect communities directly to the officials responsible for this crisis at local government level. The time for box-ticking community participation is over. With the 2026 local government elections on the horizon, South Africans should be ready to use the best accountability mechanism available − their vote,” says Patterson.
The IRR is also developing an app by which people will be able to document infrastructure failures in their communities.
Upload your photos and videos and send them directly to municipal officials here.
Read the IRR’s report on the Gauteng water crisis here.
[Image: Rajesh Balouria from Pixabay]