Ramaphosa unveils water crisis plan: Here’s what’s changing

Government has released a new roadmap to end water supply interruptions, with a focus on infrastructure, accountability, and rooting out corruption. President Cyril Ramaphosa released the National Water Action Plan on Thursday, following a meeting of the National Water Crisis Committee, known as WATERCOM, at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. The plan set out a focused, programmatic series of actions aimed at ensuring a reliable supply of quality water to all South Africans.

According to the presidency, it was designed to address the root causes of water supply challenges facing many municipalities across the country. “The National Water Action Plan outlines a clear, practical and focused approach to ensure water security for all South Africans, no matter where they live.” Ramaphosa compared the intervention to government’s earlier success in ending load shedding, saying: “By acting boldly and decisively to improve the performance of Eskom and reform our energy system, we were able to end load shedding and achieve a secure and reliable energy supply.” The plan outlined strategic interventions to tackle the water crisis over three time horizons. It proposed increasing investment in infrastructure, including through private sector participation, while pushing legal and regulatory reforms to improve how municipalities delivered services.

Tackling corruption and criminality within the water sector also formed part of the strategy. WATERCOM itself was established after the 2026 State of the Nation Address, in response to worsening water supply interruptions in several parts of the country. The committee is chaired by the President and draws together various government departments, public agencies, and the South African Local Government Association, known as SALGA.