Municipality in hot water regarding debt owed to Rand Water

Rand Water is addressing multiple municipalities about outstanding debt amounting to almost R5b, with Rand West City Local Municipality (RWCLM) being one of them.

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Rand Water spokesperson Makenosi Maroo said this debt is shared among municipalities in Gauteng, Mpumalanga, and the Free State.

“These municipalities include Emfuleni, Govan Mbeki, Merafong, Rand West City, Victor Khanye and Ngwathe.”

She added that Rand Water, South Africa’s leading water utility provider, thanks all municipalities who are responding to the call to pay for the water provided to them by Rand Water. Their financial sustainability which impacts the current and future provision of water, depends on municipalities paying for the water they receive from Rand Water. They are facing a significant challenge concerning outstanding debts owed by various municipalities.

“As part of the options available to it, we sort alternative means to recover monies owed to it and attached the Emfuleni municipality’s bank account, but have not yet been able to recover any funds from it due to persistent interference from the municipality.

To recover funds owed by municipalities, we are proactively engaging with various government entities through the Inter-Governmental Relations process.”

She stated that while certain municipalities are struggling to pay within the agreed timelines, others are unable to meet their payment commitments. Rand Water has planned infrastructure development projects that are designed to improve the provision of water services and are negatively impacted by the lack of revenue generation to support such projects. They are urging municipalities to pay for the water they receive and commit to collaborating with them to come up with payment plans that they will be able to adhere to.

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“We are urging defaulting municipalities to acknowledge the seriousness of the situation and proactively cooperate with us to find mutually beneficial resolutions. By working together, we can devise sustainable payment plans and mechanisms to recover the outstanding amounts, thereby ensuring the long-term financial sustainability of both the municipalities and Rand Water.”

Rand Water further urged consumers to continue using water sparingly.