Dept to develop water master plan

THE NORTHERN Cape Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), along with various relevant stakeholders, will be meeting next week to develop a Water and Sanitation Master Plan for the Province.

This workshop will form part of a series of meetings that are taking place across the country to address the water and sanitation challenges the country faces.

Although co-ordinated by the DWS, department spokesperson, Amogelang Moholoeng, explained that the Water and Sanitation Master Plan will also be developed and owned by various water sector stakeholders, including Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta), business and civil society.

“The provincial plan will then build into the National Master Plan guided by strategies such as the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, the National Development Plan and the Medium Term Expenditure Framework,” Moholoeng said yesterday.

“The sector in South Africa faces continuously evolving challenges as the demands and patterns of water use shift with changes to social, environment, economic and technological factors. Water and sanitation services require a co-ordinated and integrated approach to ensure that all people in South Africa have access to potable water and dignified sanitation services.”