Govt must plan ahead - Zuma

2009-11-21 14:40

Richards Bay - President Jacob Zuma on Saturday called for an urgent end to water contamination, saying that spillage of sewerage into South Africa's water supplies would lead to water being undrinkable.

"We must deal with the spillage of sewerage into our water supplies and other forms of contamination. If we don't deal with it urgently, our water will end up undrinkable because of the high levels of contamination," Zuma said.

He was speaking during the official launch of the upgrade of the Nsezi Water treatment plant in Richards Bay on Saturday afternoon.

He said challenges in the electricity sector which saw South Africa hit by major blackouts had taught government the importance of addressing future problems before they happened.

Infrastructure

"The challenge that we still need to address include an ability by some municipalities to roll out infrastructure, and to operate, maintain and rehabilitate water and sanitation infrastructure," he said.

There had been reports of spillage of sewerage into a number of rivers caused by ageing infrastructure. This did not only pose danger to people but also to nature as animals and fish died due to spillages.

It was important that the infrastructure was in place to provide clean water to meet the growing demand, because government's objective was for people to have access to water by 2014.

"Our country has a critical obligation to meet the Millennium Development Goals. One these goals is to halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation," Zuma said.

He described the Nsezi Water treatment plant upgrade as crucial, saying that there was a growing need adequately manage the "finite and diminishing resource".

"Umhlathuze and surrounding areas have seen considerable growth in water demand, both by households and industries. This is an industrial development zone and one of the critical nodes of our comprehensive rural development programme," he said.

Plan ahead

The upgrade of the Nsezi Water treatment plant reflected South Africa’s ability to plan ahead and anticipate the challenges of the future.

Zuma said South Africa’s growing industries, mines, urban and rural settlements, the agricultural sector and ever expanding tourism and manufacturing sectors were in constant need of water.

"Without water, we run the real risk of not meeting our objective of improving the quality of life of all South Africans, particularly the rural poor."

Zuma also commended Umhlathuze Water for implementing extensive water schemes in Shemula, Mandlakazi and Umkhanyakude in Northern KwaZulu-Natal.

Proper sanitation and clean water to brought dignity to people living in rural areas, he said.

"Having clean water and toilets bring dignity to people living in rural communities. People living in these communities will consider themselves as sub-human if this problem is not dealt with," said Zuma.

Cholera

He indicated that because of poor sanitation, South Africa faced a problem of cholera every year.

Cholera broke out in Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces early this year and claimed more than 10 lives.

Zuma also commended people who utilised government’s hotline, saying that it was only government officials who did not like.

"People are using it and happy how some of their problems have been handled,"

- SAPA