25 villages get clean water for the first time

When a severe drought ravaged parts of the Eastern Cape two years ago, Matatiele resident Mpumelelo Matshule was left angry at the government for failing to provide clean drinking water in his village.

The drought was so severe he lost two of his cows in Hlwahlweni village, outside Matatiele.

Matshule said hundreds of residents had to share the only available water source, a river, which often dried up in winter.

But not anymore.

This week, Hlwahlweni was among 25 rural villages across the Alfred Nzo district, with 4,000 households, where mayor Sixolile Mehlomakhulu officially switched on water taps in the areas for the first time.

The initiative is part of the mayoral outreach programme.

Mehlomakhulu said the project was funded through the water services infrastructure grant (WSIG), aimed at providing water solutions to rural communities.

“The projects are valued at R110m, which was allocated in terms of WSIG and has provided much-needed relief as we are trying to reduce water supply backlog in the district,” he said, adding that 300 jobs had been created for locals through the projects.

The district authority had started rolling out the projects in about July last year, he said.

Some of the benefiting villages included Papane, Sugarbush, Skhemane, Qhanqu, Mpoza in Umzimvubu Municipality, which consists of KwaBhaca (formerly Mount Frere); and Mount Ayliff, Mowa, Cola, Ngqwashu, Quphu and Chancele villages in Ntabankulu; and Stofini, Luphilisweni, Nontlanga, Topozo, Fundambini and Dayimane in Mbizana.

Black Diamond, Zitapile, Magema, Mrwabo, New Stands and Hlwahlweni in Matatiele also received clean running water for the first time last week, Mehlomakhulu said.