The South African Human Rights Commission will commemorate Human Rights month by hosting a National Water and Sanitation Hearing on 19 March in Midrand addressing all national provinces on the issues of lack of water and sanitation in the country as a whole.
Water and Sanitation are the most crucial needs that every individual depends on for survival. Statistics from the National Department of Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) indicated that approximately 11%, or 1.4million, households in South Africa have no access to clean drinking water.
The SAHRC held provincial Water and Sanitation hearings which ran across the country in every province from August through to December, 2012, engaging with various stakeholders, including key government departments, local and national NGOs and civil society, as well as institutions, such as the United Nations. Onsite inspections have been conducted throughout the provinces, especially in rural and peri-rural areas where access to mechanisms of redress for lack of rights is problematic.
The aim of the national hearing is to create an opportunity for the SAHRC to engage with the relevant government departments responsible for service delivery on these rights representing community members and also to create an opportunity to present its findings and recommendations from the campaign to government departments and key stakeholders.
The national hearing will be held as follows:
Date: Tuesday, 19 March 2013
Venue: Pan African Parliament (Midrand)
Time: 09h00 – 16h00
The Chairperson and the Deputy-Chairperson of the Human Rights Commission will be attending the hearing together with representatives from various government departments.
For more details please contact:
Alucia Sekgathume
Tel: 011 877 3627
E-mail: asekgathume@sahrc.org.za
