Picture: RSA president, Cyril Ramaphosa
By OBAKENG MAJE
20 July 2026 – The Republic of South Africa (RSA) president, Cyril Ramaphosa said this past weekend, they celebrated the birthday of the nation’s founding father, President Nelson Mandela. Ramaphosa said celebrating Madiba’s birthday through good works is significant because it turns their remembrance of this global icon into action.
He further said it reflects the belief that the most meaningful way to honour him is not merely to praise what he achieved, but to continue the work to which he devoted his life. Ramaphosa added that for Madiba, the freedom he fought for was not merely the right to vote.
“It was the freedom to live with dignity, to live in decent conditions and to enjoy the basic necessities of life. In honour of Madiba’s legacy, we are responding to the need to expand access to safe and reliable water to underserved communities across South Africa. We launched the National Water Access Acceleration Programme through the decentralised water supply schemes.
“This is part of one of the priorities identified in this year’s State of the Nation Address (SONA), to address the water crisis that is causing immense hardship for households, communities and businesses across the country. The programme was launched in Hammanskraal in Gauteng, a community that has had longstanding challenges with water access, and where lives were tragically lost three years ago due to a cholera outbreak,” he said.
Ramaphosa said as part of the programme, boreholes were handed over to the Hammanskraal community, and the Klipdrift Package Water Treatment Plant was officially commissioned. Similar interventions were rolled out in other parts of Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. He said these include borehole drilling and groundwater development, rainwater harvesting and rehabilitating existing water supply schemes.
“The programme is intended to shorten the time between identifying a community’s need and delivering a working water supply. It will use solutions suited to local conditions rather than waiting in every instance for large, complex infrastructure projects. Expanding water access has been one of the most important achievements of our democracy.
“According to the 2022 Census, over 82% of households in the country had access to piped water either inside their dwelling or inside their yard. The proportion of households with no access to piped water more than halved between 1996 and 2022. We must acknowledge that in too many municipalities, the government has not succeeded to maintain infrastructure, to manage water services properly and to respond with sufficient urgency,” said Ramaphosa.
He said parts of the country are experiencing worsening water shortages and deteriorating water quality. Ramaphosa said in some places, ageing water infrastructure has collapsed.
The Guardian 