Cape needs drought bond

Your editorial on water was both spot-on and timeous (Parched Cape runs out of time, October 30). In a time of crisis “extreme” is a much-used adjective but Cape Town, voted one of the top 10 holiday destinations in the world several times, a huge foreign currency earner and depository of billions of rand’s investment in property by foreigners, is in a crisis that would be a global first if we were to run out of water.

Whatever we do now it will take several wet seasons to put us back into a stable position. This crisis is a national one — the knock-on effects you describe will be an awful reality in the other eight provinces. I am not a water engineer, but as a financially literate person I know it will require money that financially illiterate persons are denying us in government funds, as you forcefully point out. So we better get on without them now.

Here is a plan: Cape Town issues an emergency drought disaster municipal bond, raising R5bn in 21 days, underwritten by the major fund managers, listed and private institutions headquartered in the Cape, plus the Public Investment Corporation, untainted by political motives with many members affected here. The public both here and foreign are invited to buy these bonds and provide the funds to do whatever needs to be done, and fast.

SA’s CEOs need to take the lead in creating and backing this emergency bond. And madam mayor can hit the road and media to get these CEOs on side. Money is not the problem.

Diarmuid Baigrie

Newlands