Limpopo failing to spend a third of local water budgets as communities cry out for water

The Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation raised their concern about the lack of monitoring by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWA) on Limpopo’s municipalities’ underspending of the Water Services Infrastructure Grant (WSIG).

The committee’s concerns emanate from the waste water infrastructure backlog to deal with increasing demand, as well as the failing water services infrastructure.

The chairperson of the committee, Machwene Semenya, said in a statement it was unacceptable that the spending of the municipalities was not monitored.

“It is unacceptable that monitoring of municipalities is not done to ensure that allocated resources are used for the benefit of communities, especially in the context of lack of water to many communities in the province and the continuing pollution of rivers by dysfunctional waste water treatment works.

“It is also undesirable that unspent money is returned to the National Treasury at the expense of a project that would have improved the lives of the people,” she said.

Semenya said the committee was informed that municipalities in Limpopo had spent 65% of the budgeted R506 million intended to improve water infrastructure in the province.

She said the committee was more concerned with the municipalities that hadn’t yet spent the R200 million of WSIG grant money allocated to them, which included the Mopani, Vhembe, Lephalale and Sekhukhune district municipalities.

The committee called on the DWA and other related departments to improve their monitoring tools to ensure that grants were efficiently utilised to deliver quality services to the people.

The chairperson said the committee also called for effective planning with clear timelines for bulk infrastructure in Limpopo.

“The committee is worried that the Nandoni to Nsami 49km bulk water system has not been completed, despite the initial completion date of February 2018.

“This delayed trend is evident among many projects in the province, which has a direct implication on the funding required, especially because infrastructure projects require further additional funds for any delays,” Semenya said.

She added that the committee called for collaboration with municipalities to ensure alignment between the completion of bulk projects and reticulation infrastructure.

“It is unacceptable that provision of water and sanitation is delayed due to reticulation infrastructure not being there.

“We have called for a seamless working relationship between all departments and municipalities to ensure provision of services.

“So the committee will for its part engage the Select Committee on Cooperative Governance, Water and Sanitation to establish a working relationship aimed at ensuring that the executive is held accountable and that services are delivered,” she concluded.

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