Address by Ms. Nomvula Mokonyane, Minister of Water and Sanitation during the launch of the Jozini Regional Water Project in Umkhanyakude District Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal
Introduction
KwaZulu-Natal, like many parts of the country has in the recent past experienced serious drought conditions.
Water scarcity in the province has forced the department to develop multi-stakeholders partnerships that include the Water Sector Support (KZN), the Water Regulation & Use (KZN), Umkhanyakude District Municipality and Mhlathuze Water Board to effectively mitigate the challenge.
The UMkhanyakude District Municipality is responsible for providing water and sanitation services in all Local Municipalities within its jurisdiction, i.e. UMhlabuyalingana, Jozini, The Big Five False Bay, Hlabisa and Mtubatuba.
Based on the demand for water within the District to meet the requirement for potable water supply to rural backlog areas, generally, there was a dire need for a new potable bulk water supply scheme with a source to the UMkhanyakude District Municipality.
The point cannot be emphasize enough that water sector is critical for government’s transformation and development objectives.
Providing safe and accessible water supply and sanitation services profoundly affects poor people’s daily lives.
Water is life and has a catalytic cross-cutting impact on socio-economic development as well as peace and stability. Sanitation is dignity.
Water is enshrined as a basic human right in our Constitution and specifically two sections of the Bill of Rights:
Everyone enjoys the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being;
Every citizen of South Africa enjoys the right of access to sufficient food and water.
Efforts to manage protect and preserve water as a critical resource in a sustainable manner speaks to the collective responsibility of all the stakeholders in the water sector.
Water is a resource with a diversified utility, it is the basis of life itself and it is not produced. There is no substitute for water.
It is of strategic importance that access to water, especially to the historically un-served communities, begin to undo the structural poverty created by the apartheid system to deny certain communities water.
Through the Radical Approach for Operations and Maintenance, the Department of Water and Sanitation intend to:
- Restore the operational integrity of dysfunctional water supply and sanitation systems;
- Provide capacity support to municipalities to improve service delivery with regard to water supply and sanitation services.
Project description:
Pongolapoort Bulk Water Supply Scheme
The project is located in the Local Municipality area of Jozini under the uMkhanyakude DM:
- It forms part of a much greater project, of which the study area extends from Jozini in the south to the Mozambique border in the north.
- The western boundary of the area is formed by the Pongolapoort Dam and the Swaziland border.
- The eastern boundary is formed by the Pongola River to the south, and the boundaries of the Shemula Water Supply Scheme to the north.
The Jozini Bulk Water Supply Project, which is co-funded under the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) is required as there are very limited alternative water sources in this area.
A 5 year tripartite agreement was signed in 2014 by the three partners, Department of Water & Sanitation, UMkhanyakude District Municipality and Mhlathuze Water, to assist the district in the in the implementation of various bulk projects under the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant(RBIG).
The Project will provide about 134 864 people north of Jozini with sustainable water supply. The estimated project cost is R2.1 billion (Bulk & Reticulation). A feasibility study was completed in March 2009 and construction in phase 1 commenced in October 2010.
This project aims to make a huge impact in alleviating the water supply backlog within the rural areas of Umkhanyakude District Municipality.
Project Rogress (Main Scheme)
The primary focus is to supply potable water to rural communities within the Jozini Local Municipality located in the uMkhanyakude District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal. The project aims to increase the production of potable water and to install bulk water and reticulation networks in the area.
The purpose of the project is to ultimately supply potable water to a population of 134 864 people (approximately 16,200 households), allowing for an average consumption per capita of 60 ℓ/c/d and a 30-year time horizon.
The scheme consists of the following components:
- Raw water supply system
- New water treatment plant
- Bulk treated supply system
- Reticulation
The estimated cost of the total scheme is approximately R2,1 billion (costs in 2014 excluding inflation).
Cumulative expenditure on the project up to the end of the last financial year (2016/17) is R970 million. The budget allocation this financial year is R119 million. This will complete the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) funded component of this scheme.
The 40ML/Day water treatments works is currently operational, but due to the reticulation not being complete, the plant is not running at optimum capacity.
The reticulation network, however, is only around 15% funded at this point in time, and has fallen far behind the bulk construction due to lack of MIG funding.
An amount of R930 million is required to complete the reticulation. It is worrisome that there is currently no movement on the reticulation component of the works.
Phase 1 of the Project:
- The first phase of this project was completed and launched by the Minister in August 2014 (i.e. source to tap).
- This phase 1 consists of a temporary abstraction, a package plant for treating of water, two reservoirs and pump stations, the bulk mains linking these structures as well as the distribution between these two reservoirs.
Some of 22 villages that are benefitting from this phase of the Project include the following:
Bhekindoda, Gwaliweni, Ingwavuma, Kwa-Mbone, Lebombo, Mbondla, Msinini, Mthonjeni, Nondabuya, Othobothini, Zulwini.
Regional Water Treatment Works
The water treatment plant recently completed on this project has a capacity of treating 40Ml/day of polished water.
A 2.4km long raw water pipeline 800mm diameter, has also been recently commissioned to abstract water from the dam to supply the plant.
The Water treatment works has been constructed in the southern area of Othobothini, along the Pongolapoort River Ward 8.
The water treatment works supply extends to the areas north of Jozini, and the south boundaries of the Ingwavuma town in the north KwaZulu-Natal. The western border is formed by the Pongolapoort Dam and the Swaziland border.
The plant will also be able to supply the areas South of Jozini and as far as UMhlabuyalingana Local Municipalities, but also extends southwards into the Big 5 False Bay Local Municipality. The areas that are set to benefit there are Myeni/Ngwenya, Mankuza/Jobe, Myeni/Ntsinde, Mashabane, Mabaso and Zikhali/Mbila, Mnqobokazi, Qwabe/Makhasa and Nibela Tribal Areas.
The command reservoir is the only outstanding works from the bulk scope of works. This works is currently under implementation.
Conclusion
Whilst we speak of progress made, on the one hand, we still have challenges related to the project as a whole, on the other.
One of the main challenges to the successful completion of this project is the lack of progress on the Reticulation construction. This works is almost at a standstill, however, all efforts need to be put to ensure that the project is accelerated and completed within the stipulated time-frame.
The important of Operations and Maintenance, whose responsibility lie squarely on the shoulders of the Water Services Authority, cannot be over-emphasized.
Dankie
Ngiyabonga.
