The Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs presented her budget speech to Parliament on 14 April 2011. The Minister has committed her department to “make more water available for economic growth and the creation of decent jobs.” She noted that water scarcity will limit the potential for economic growth. She stressed the need for improved water use practices, behaviour and attitudes as critical to the success and sustainability of social and economic development in South Africa.

The Minister referred to the development of water infrastructure that has taken place over the last year as well as plans for the coming year for the building of dams and other infrastructure through various public-private partnerships.

She projected that by 2050 South Africa will in all probability exceed the limits of our economically useable land-based water resources, but emphasised that the Department is working on innovative measures to ensure clean water for human consumption for future generations.

The Minister urged communities to take the lead in promoting water conservation and indicates that the Department has begun raising awareness amongst target audiences. She said that “education of the general public on water conservation continues to be highly imperative”.

Strategies such as desalination and the exploration of underground water supplies as measures to augment the current water supply are underway. Close cooperation with municipalities aims to increase the capacity of local government to deliver more quality water services to more people.

An initiative that is designed to improve the quality of drinking water is the Blue Drop Audit process – the relatively new World Health Organisation concept of water safety. Municipalities have been trained in preparation for these audits. The Blue Drop 2011 report will be released in June 2011.

The Department will engage in the development of legislation in the coming year which will go towards “bringing water to our communities”. The new legislation will prevent the practice of water entitlement from resulting in the situation where water is hoarded and not released for the benefit of all. The revised legislation will make it possible to reallocate water resources to other sectors of the economy as well new human settlements across the country. This legislation is envisaged as critical in expanding access to water resources.

The ECD sector is ideally placed to take up the Minister’s invitation to the citizens of the country to support all efforts to make South Africa a water-conscious country where behaviours, attitudes and practices are directed to water conservation through:

• the inclusion of water conservation education in the ECD curriculum; and
• the inclusion in the ECD community and centre-based programmes of information and knowledge that will ensure programmes are designed and implemented so as to be respectful and protective of community-based water sources, now and in the future.

WEB LINKS FOR THIS ARTICLE

View the Minister of Water Affairs" budget speech.