The prolonged water outages experienced across Johannesburg following last week's planned Rand Water maintenance should serve as a wake-up call that South Africa's water crisis can no longer be managed by government acting alone, WaterCAN said.
While the maintenance itself was necessary, the slow recovery exposed the fragility of Johannesburg's water system and the consequences of years of delayed infrastructure investment, poor coordination and weak governance.
Communities across the city were left without water for days after maintenance had officially been completed, with some residents experiencing outages lasting more than 100 hours.
"The maintenance was necessary. The prolonged outages were not. There is little confidence in the city's ability to respond to disruptions, whether planned or unexpected. Johannesburg's water system is operating in permanent crisis mode," said WaterCAN Executive Director Dr Ferrial Adam.
WaterCAN said the latest outages highlighted a broader failure in how government approaches South Africa's water challenges.
"Government continues to behave as though it has all the answers. Business is too often approached simply as a source of funding, while civil society is consulted only after key decisions have already been made. Consultation cannot become a box-ticking exercise. South Africa's water crisis requires genuine partnerships where expertise, evidence and lived experience help shape decisions from the outset," Adam said.
WaterCAN said both Rand Water and Johannesburg Water must accept responsibility for the impact on residents.
While municipal operational failures contributed to the prolonged outages, Rand Water cannot regard its responsibility as ending at the bulk supply system. WaterCAN understands that power failures at key Rand Water pumping infrastructure before the maintenance left several reservoirs depleted ahead of the shutdown, making recovery even more difficult once municipal systems came under pressure.
"The disconnect between bulk water planning and the realities facing municipalities is becoming increasingly apparent. Municipal systems are already weakened by ageing infrastructure, high water losses and limited technical capacity. Planning must take these vulnerabilities into account," Adam said.
WaterCAN said Johannesburg Water's continued delays in completing critical resilience projects, including the Hursthill 2 Reservoir, further undermine the city's ability to recover from disruptions.
Adam said the current crisis also raises important questions about how government engages those willing to help solve it.
"The Presidential Johannesburg Working Group on Water and Sanitation was created to bring together government, business and civil society to help turn Johannesburg's water system around. But collaboration cannot mean government simply reporting back on decisions that have already been made or expecting others to endorse existing plans. If we are serious about solving this crisis, these forums must become spaces where challenges are openly debated, expertise is shared and solutions are developed together," Adam said.
WaterCAN, which participates in the Presidential Johannesburg Working Group, said collaboration must move beyond information sharing to genuine co-governance, where the knowledge, technical expertise and lived experience of all partners influence decisions before they are implemented.
With additional Rand Water maintenance scheduled later this year and summer demand expected to increase, WaterCAN warned that similar disruptions were likely unless urgent action was taken.
"The longer these failures continue, the more residents will turn to private solutions such as boreholes, many of which are unregulated and place additional pressure on already stressed groundwater resources," Adam said.
WaterCAN called on the City of Johannesburg to publish a credible, time-bound recovery plan for its water infrastructure, ring-fence funding for maintenance and upgrades, and ensure complete transparency over infrastructure contracts and procurement.
"South Africa's water crisis is not simply a funding challenge. It is a governance challenge. Until government is prepared to genuinely work alongside municipalities, water boards, business, civil society and communities as equal partners, we will continue responding to one crisis after another instead of building a resilient water system," Adam said.
Donate to WaterCAN
Across South Africa, WaterCAN’s volunteers and citizen scientists are monitoring drinking water and sanitation failures, uncovering risks, and demanding action from those responsible. We challenge polluters, call out government negligence, and stand with communities whose rights to safe water and sanitation are routinely violated. Your support keeps this watchdog work alive and powerful.
For Media Enquiries please contact WaterCAN Communications Manager on Jonathan Erasmus 073 227 6075 or email media@watercan.org.za
