Five days without water for Joburg’s most vulnerable is unacceptable, says WaterCAN

WaterCAN has condemned the City of Johannesburg after residents of Nana’s Farm, Phumla Mqashi and Water Works, all informal settlements in the city, were left without water for five days.

The organisation said activists in the affected communities reported that there had been no regular tanker deliveries to refill JoJo tanks, the primary water source for many residents, for nearly a week due to apparent financial constraints within the city.

WaterCAN Executive Director Dr Ferrial Adam said the situation amounted to a complete failure to provide a basic service.

“The city’s failure to fund and deliver these tankers is not a disruption of a backup system - it is a complete failure to provide basic services,” said Adam.

Johannesburg Water has reportedly been unable to deploy tankers because of a lack of funds. WaterCAN said this posed a direct threat to residents’ health, dignity and survival, and reflected a broader pattern in which vulnerable communities were the first to be left without access to water.

The organisation said the crisis extended beyond the three informal settlements. Communities supplied by the Hursthill 2 reservoir, which is currently on bypass, were also experiencing prolonged outages, with some areas going days without water.

“What makes this even more disturbing is the timing. As the country marks Human Rights Day and World Water Day this week, residents in Johannesburg are being denied a basic constitutional right,” said Adam.

Adam said the city’s lack of communication was “unacceptable”.

The City of Johannesburg and Johannesburg Water have repeatedly faced criticism for failing to communicate clearly, if at all, with residents on major water supply disruptions.

“No water for five days is not an inconvenience - it is a violation. This is exactly why funding for water and sanitation must be ring-fenced. Essential services cannot depend on inconsistent budgets while entire communities are left without any access to water.”

WaterCAN called on the City of Johannesburg to immediately restore water supply to the affected communities, and communicate transparently with residents, and explain how a city of this scale had failed to deliver even the most basic level of service.