A proposed water sector plan for the Dr Kenneth Kaunda District

Abstract

The radical reform of potable water services provisioning by means of promulgation of the Water Services Act 108 of 1997 and the National Water Act 36 of 1998 in South Africa (SA) started a process of addressing the imbalance which existed in how the national resource was distributed. Water is now recognised as a scarce resource that belongs to all the people of the country and consequently it should be managed in an integrated way for social and economic development including future growth (Fuggle and Rabie 2005:293; Riemann, Chimboza and Fubesi 2012:446). The provision of potable water by water services authorities (WSAs) is an important basic service that faces a number of challenges such as the use of out-dated infrastructure and a lack of skilled and knowledgeable people that place overt pressure on demand for service delivery. It is against this background that the researchers have undertaken to investigate how a municipality which is forced to obtain its potable water supply from nearby surface- and groundwater catchments, can manage it in a more effective, efficient, equal, economic and sustainable manner by means of improved planning procedures to enhance co-operative governance and intergovernmental relations. A qualitative research design was used to conduct the study, which included a literature review, semi-structured interviews, non-probability data sampling and scientific analyses of responses. Furthermore, a case-study approach was followed by the researchers, with Dr Kenneth Kaunda District Municipality (Dr KKDM) as the unit of analysis (the locus). The major research finding of the study included that a Water Sector Plan (WSP) was lacking and non-existent in the Dr Kenneth Kaunda District Municipality (Dr KKDM) and therefore water services delivery could not be coordinated effectively.