Access to water is a constitutional right

THE celebration of the adoption of the Constitution on Saturday, May 8, was an affirmation of efforts to address the question of equity and the allocation of scarce water resources for transformation to deal with poverty and to promote sustainable socio-economic development.

Twenty-five years after the adoption of the Constitution, the Department of Water and Sanitation has proven to be one of the quintessential advocates of the Constitution by providing the basic necessities of water and sanitation as one of the basic human rights.

This in the context that equitable access to water and the benefits derived from it are central to transformation and extracting previously disadvantaged people from the periphery of the economy to the mainstream economy.

The department is of the view that the denial of some sections of the population to economic benefits has been a direct result of them not accessing water.

However, since 1994 the department has made strides in providing clean, quality water to communities. It believes that providing water is a constitutional imperative and that any act or omission that deviates from it is in conflict with the values of the Constitution. It acknowledges that these efforts still need to go far enough to achieve equality between those who were advantaged and those who were not in terms of access to water.

HOSIA SITHOLE | Communicator at the Department of Water and Sanitation