THE minister of Water and Sanitation, Senzo Mchunu returned to the Eastern Cape in mid-August to assess the state of water supply and water projects meant to bring much-needed relief in the drought-stricken Nelson Mandela Bay Metro and local municipalities under the Sarah Baartman District including Kouga and Makana.
The visit took place shortly after Mchunu led president Cyril Ramaphosa to the Tsomo Bulk Water Supply Project, to show progress made on the transboundary bulk water scheme that will serve the Chris Hani District and part of Amathole District Municipality, as part of the Presidential District Development Model Imbizo.
Mchunu, accompanied by deputy ministers David Mahlobo and Judith Tshabalala were due to meet with the leadership of NMBM as well as the two local municipalities and the district to get an update on the progress made in the implementation of water projects. The projects were earmarked to meet the shortfall in water demand that the municipalities, which are also water services authorities, are experiencing.
The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has allocated budget through its Water Services Infrastructure Grants (WSIG) to Kouga Local Municipality to implement a drought relief project to alleviate water challenges caused by the prevailing drought, while in Makana Local Municipality, a project to refurbish and upgrade the James Kleynhans Water Treatment Works is underway, to optimise and enable the plant to meet current water demands in the area.
The delegation started each of the two days by visiting the sites of the projects to witness the progress that has been made.
