June’2000 Published by Amanz’ Abantu Services (PTY) LTD Issue No.532 Alexandra Road, King William’s Town

N E W SN E W SAmanz’ abantu

NATIONAL WATER WEEK

Amanz’abantu is the Programme Implementing Agent (PIA) for theDepartment of Water Affairs and Forestry(DWAF) on the BoTT Programme.

TThe country and the Eastern Capewas a hive of activity as TheDepartment of Water Affairs and

Forestry ran programs during theNational Water Week 2000, which ranfrom the 17th to the 24th of March.

“VIVA WATER PURE AND CLEAN,”was the slogan adopted by the

Department of Water Affairs andForestry (DWAF) for the duration ofthe National Water Week. Opening theProvincial Water Week at the GoodNews Centre, King William’s Town, onthe 17th of March, The Eastern CapePremier, Rev Makhenkensi Stofilebrought attention to the fact that water

is essential to life, but can cause destruction. “The catastrophe causedby the flood brings into sharp focusthe relevance and significance ofWater Week” He mentioned that therehad been suffering and loss of lives inthe Eastern Cape prior to the NationalWater Week, due to floods.

It became obvious during theNational Water Week that water is anindispensable giver of life, but that itcan also destroy lives, as evidencedfrom the floods which ravagedMpumalanga, the Northern Provinceand Mozambique. The Premier wenton to say that one of the major ironiesof South Africa was that in a fewmonths time, many parts of the coun-try would be affected by severedroughts. He saw the National WaterWeek as a platform to educate the communities and school childrenabout the need to respect and conservewater. Rev. Stofile congratulated theDepartment of Water Affairs andForestry for involving schools in theirprogramme and hoped that conserva-tion would be part of the school syl-labus. “Without such education, peo-ple who have always had easy access towater are likely to waste it, forgettingthat South Africa is a water- scarcecountry,” he said. Later in the day thePremier led a group of people in aclean-up of the Buffalo River

In the Kei District, the Kei North EastRegion was tasked with the co-ordina-tion of National Water Week 2000under the Regional co-ordinator Ms PL Gasa-Lubelwana. Although theNational Water Week was celebratednationally from the 20th to the 26th ofMarch, the Kei NE decided to kick offthe campaign on the 17th of March2000 naming the day River CleaningDay. School Children, as well as other

sectors of our community, who rarelyhave the opportunity to take part insuch events participated in the day’sactivities.

One of the activities for the day wasto clean a section of the Umtata Rivernear the city. This activity proved to bea great success and approximately 130bags of refuse were collected withinfour hours. Other activities includedquality testing of the river water and asurvey of water life in the UmtataRiver, which were conducted by theUniversity of Transkei. The aim was toshow school children the effects pollu-tion has on our rivers. This event wasa huge success, and the children andsome of the volunteers and officials,were amazed at their findings.

The family day on the 21st of Marchproved to be to be the crowning eventof National Water Week 2000, and wassuch a success that community members, sponsors and officials at thedam on the day were calling for it tobe an annual event. This event attract-ed approximately 1500 people to thedam, and was attended by people rightacross the spectrum (race, sex, creed).Credit for the success must be given tothe organising committee, but especially to the Umtata Dam staff,who went all-out to prepare thegrounds for the day. A special thanksshould also be given to theDepartment of Economic Affairs,Environment and Tourism for their assistance in helping to make this daysuch a resounding success.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

VIVA WATER PURE AND CLEAN

Eastern Cape Premier, Rev. Makhenkesi Stofile, Opening the Provincial Water week

at the Good News Centre, KWT

.

AMANZ’ABANTU EMPOWERS THE PEDDIE COMMUNITY

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EEveryone was singing jubilantly as members ofthe Masiphathisane Water Works received theircertificates on the 19th of April at the

Masibambane Christian Centre in Peddie. They had just completed their three-week course inBusiness Management and Elementary Bookkeeping,which was conducted by the East Cape TrainingCentre; an organisation which is accredited by TheDepartment of Labour. This course was born out ofthe need to train the local community to collect rev-enue and to operate and maintain the infrastructureafter the transfer of the of the newly constructed vil-lage water supply infrastructure to the local authority.

Amanz’abantu as the Project ImplementationAgent (PIA) of the Department of Water Affairs andForestry (DWAF) was involved in the Business Plan as well as the construction of the PeddieRegional Water Supply Scheme, which is situated inthe Peddie District of the Eastern Cape and wasopened in May 1999. As part of Amanz’abantu’sresponsibility to ensure the scheme’s sustainabilityafter transfer, a Water Services Provider unit (WSP)had to be established.

This group of people who were trained came fromthe Village Water Committee of the four villagesinvolved, namely: Nqwenerana, Mgwangqa, Cisiraand Ncala. Two nominees were chosen from eachvillage. In order for the nominees to perform theirfunctions properly in the future, Amanz’abantu hadto empower them with the necessary skills andknowledge. During the training needs analysis period, Amanz’abantu identified the need for inten-sive training on Business Management andElementary Bookkeeping. This involved providingtraining on administration, maintenance and com-munication. Mrs. Kaulela, Deputy Chairperson ofMasiphathisane Water Works was grateful toAmanz’abantu; “We give credit to Amanz’abantubecause through the workshop we now understandfinancial issues, the use of water, maintenance andcommunication.” She went on to say this was thebeginning of other avenues and they were going tobuild on what had been started. The main duties ofthe unit are as follows:•Communication at village level: They will beeducating and informing the community about anyprocesses surrounding them and will hold regular

meetings with the community to update them andreport any faults.•Maintenance: To ensure that taps are clean andthat there is no litter around. To report any faults tothe Amatola District Council and requests for extrataps by the community will be channelled throughthem. •Security: To be a watchful eye looking out forillegal connections. The Mayor of Peddie Mr.Ndwayana congratulated Amanz’abantu for involving itself in this training programme. He wenton to say that this training was in line with the newapproach to education, that addresses the self-devel-opment of communities. He went on to say thiscourse was going to help the issue of sustainabilityand was going to give them strength to ask for moremoney to go to other villages. “Do not just receivecertificates, implement knowledge for the benefit ofcommunities and use the knowledge to train othercommunities,” he said.

The unit has been formed into a company calledMasiphathane Water Works and the contract with theWSA, which is the Amatola District Council, isexpected to be signed soon.•

There were three guest speakers on the day, namelyChief Patekile Holomisa (Member of Parliament),Mr Sizakele Gabula of the Department of EconomicAffairs, Environment and Tourism (DEAET) andMayor of Umtata, Edgar Mapekula, who remindedthe people that not only was this a day for the fami-lies to enjoy but also to remember and to learn aboutthe importance of water in our lives. Besides theguest speakers, there was an abundance of water-based activities for all participants. Entertainment inthe form of competitions and music was provided byUnitra Community Radio DJ’s and the Coca ColaCompany.

The activities included a fishing competition,swimming, rubber duck racing, and rides, jet ski rac-

ing and rides, a life saving demonstration by theTranskei Lifesaving association, a raft building com-petition between the South African National DefenceForce (SANDF) and Members of the public, and therewere informative stalls by Nurseries, DEAET andDWAF

“You the communities of the Umtata area can beproud of the efforts you have made in focusing onwater and the importance of using and sustainingyour water supply effectively,” said Oliver Ive,Managing Director of Amanz’abantu who was one ofthe guest speakers on the 24th of March which wasthe final day of the Water Week celebrations inUmtata. He went on to say that the water supplyprocess required partnerships between stakeholders

for successful and sustainable implementation. Onesuch initiative is the Build operate, Train andTransfer programme (BoTT) of the Department ofWater Affairs and Forestry.

He reminded the community that there was a needfor them to pay for water supply services because“without this payment service delivery will be unsustainable and the service will collapse”

By the end of the weeklong celebrations, the com-munity, the school children and all the other peoplewho attended really appreciated the importance ofwater and why everyone has to be involved in conserving it.•

National Water Week cont. from Pg1.The Premier, Rev. Stofile, leading the community

members and officials in the cleaning up of theBuffalo River during the opening of the Water W

eek

E U Provides Running Water To The EasternCape Communities

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FFive villages incorporating approximately 4000residents in the Cacadu Administrative Areanow have running water after the

R 2,I million Zingqutu water project was opened byWater Affairs and Forestry Minister Ronnie Kasrilson the 20th of May 2000. As echoed by AmbassadorLaidler, head of European Union (E U) Delegationin South Africa, the objective of the EuropeanDevelopment Programme is to “redress the inequal-ities inherited from the past.” These inequalities areparticularly evident in the water supply sector.

Approximately 65% of the 6.3 million people liv-ing in rural areas in the Eastern Cape are withoutadequate water supplies and at least 85% are with-out safe sanitation facilities. Rural households haveto travel an average distance exceeding 500 metresfrom home to fetch water. Ambassador Laidler wenton to say that the E U is proud to be associated withthe activities of DWAF in addressing this.

The White Paper on Community Water Supply andsanitation specifies a basic water supply of 25 litresper capita per day available within 200m of eachhousehold. In support of the Government’s RDP

programme, The European Union made a grant ofapproximately R113 million available for institu-tional and social development support as well as forthe provision of water services infrastructure. Of thisamount, R83, 7 million was set aside for the instal-lation of basic water supply and sanitation infra-structure targeting the former “homeland” areas ofthe Transkei and Ciskei. Together with the govern-ment’s contribution, the total investment in infra-structure increased to R104 million.

These funds were used to provide water to 154 vil-lages, serving a total population of 215 000 people.A substantial health and hygiene programme hasalso been implemented. Of the 22 schemes, MvulaTrust implemented 10. Schemes ranged from springprotection and borehole supplies for individual vil-lages to regional schemes providing treated water toclusters and villages.

The poverty stricken provinces of the Eastern Cape,KwaZulu Natal and the Northern Province will betargeted in the near future as DWAF and the E U arecurrently preparing a study for a new budgetarysupport programme for Community Water Supply

and Sanitation (SSP-CWSS), with a total grant allo-cation in the order of R 400- R465 million rand.

The Minister in the Department of Water Affairsand Forestry (DWAF) Ronnie Kasrils hailed the E Ufor rendering immense support to this country inrelation to water delivery. He then urged the com-munities to pay for services so as to maintain thewater systems; “ Look after the project, it now mustbe taken over by you as your child. We leave youwith this child, to maintain it. Have a WaterCommittee and work with the Local Authority sothat you can help contribute to the maintenance ofthis project.” Amanz’abantu is proud to be involvedin the E U programme in the Eastern Cape.Amanz’abantu is mainly involved in the call-downprocess to assist the E U. This means that the wholeBoTT process is not utilised but just a part of it isused.

Amanz’abantu was involved mainly in the con-struction of the projects except Madlangala andSipaqeni, which are full BoTT projects. The otherprojects involved are Engcobo, Umzimvubu,Kotanaand Matatiele.•

Above:School Childrenperforming dur-ing the officialopening of the EUWater Projects inthe Eastern Capeat ZingquthuVillage, Glen GreyDistrict.Left:EU Ambassador toSouth Africa, Mr.M. Laidler, duringthe opening of theEU Water Projectsin the EasternCape on 20 May,2000 atZingquthu.

DWAF- E U Funded CWSS- ProjectsPROJECT NAME DISTRICT/AREA PROJECT COST IMPLEMENTING AGENTS BoTT INVOLVEMENT

Several Eastern Cape R 9,734,00O,00 Mvula Trust None

Cofimvaba St Marks R 6,381,000,00 Camdekon/Africon Calldown-material supply

Kotana Nquamakwe R 10 393 000 00 UWP/RSS/BoTT Implement Phase 11

Zingquthu Glen Grey R 2 165 000 00 RSS None

Mjika WS Tsolo R 5,107.000,00 NSI/CETI None

Umzimvubu WS Port St Johns R 19 326 000 00 HHO/Ludico Calldown-Contractor

Engcobo Engcobo R 18,227,000.00 Gl BB/CETI Calldown-Contractor

Umzimkulu WS Umzimku lu R 14,935,000,00 EVN/Mattcom None

Matatiele Village Matatiele R 3,126,000,00 MWCES/Mattcom None

Makomareng Matatiele R1,283,000.00 MWCES/Mattcom None

Madlangala Ext. Matatiele R 3 101 000 00 BoTT Implement

Xhora Villages Elliotdale R1 068 000.00 C & R / Africon None

Sipaqeni E WS Flagstaff R 1,601,000,00 Ruwade/Rainbow None

Sipaqani G WS Flagstaff R 2,079,000,00 BoTT Implement

Ugutyulo Eastern Cape R 5,500,000,00 Several None

TOTAL PROJECT COST R104,026,000,00

COST RECOVERY - CHALLENGES FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT

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TThe provision of basic services, especially waterand sanitation, to all South Africans is one ofthe key goals of government. In the spirit of

co-operative governance, national and provincialgovernments are working together to help buildstrong and effective municipalities in order toenhance the quality of services that are delivered tocommunities. Government is also facilitating part-nerships with communities, traditional leaders,non-governmental organisations/community basedorganisations and the private sector, to ensure thatthe achievements already obtained with regard toservice delivery, are strengthened and enhanced.

In the water and sanitation sector, two criticalpieces of legislation have been passed, the NationalWater Act (Act 36 of 1998) and the Water ServicesAct (Act 108 0f 1997). The National Water Act aimsto achieve integrated water resource management toensure equitable and sustainable use of and accessto resources. It is essential that Local Governmentco-operate with provincial and national governmentto achieve this goal. The Water Services Act dealsdirectly with municipality’s new role as facilitatorsof water services provision.

The White Paper on Local Government spells outthe establishment of efficient, viable municipalitieswith the capacity to deliver basic services, as well as

the inclusion of community participation in deci-sion- making. From this white paper comes theMunicipal Demarcation Act (Act 27 of 1998), whichprescribes procedures for the setting up of aDemarcation Board tasked with the responsibility ofdemarcating municipal boundaries. The demarca-tion process should ensure that municipalities arefinancially viable and have administrative capacity.Most of the existing municipalities are not able tocollect revenue from the consumers.

In any country, the concept of ‘free water’ has ledto people being treated as the objects of aid ratherthan partners in development resulting in therebeing no relationship of accountability between theservice provider and the beneficiaries. Also as moreschemes are commissioned there is a rapid reduc-tion in the finances available for the development ofnew basic services for those who have nothing. Withthe provision of free water, communities have beenmisled into believing that water provision is cheapand as a result they have little or no understandingof the true costs of implementing water projects oroperating and maintaining them. There is a greatneed for cost recovery and Local Government faces achallenge as far as collecting revenue from the con-sumers is concerned.

Local Government should consider following ademand responsive approach (DRA). Water andsanitation projects, which are guided by local com-munity members and based on locally generateddemand, have demonstrated greater sustainabilityover time, and greater levels of cost recovery. Therehave been more meaningful health improvementsand better adherence to basic maintenance andrepair. Economic spin-offs for the local community,particularly women, have resulted.

To support the DRA approach, Local Governmentshould make sure that the cost considerations forboth households and Local Government are thor-oughly work shopped and finalised. Willingness topay and sometimes even acceptance of a project,clearly depends on proper consultation and com-munity empowerment hence “No consultation, nocash flow.” It should ensure that water projectsinclude plans for income generation, livestockfarming and land management so that potential

spin-offs from improved water supplies are realised.Local Government should include women in theproject process as they are the primary managers ofwater, health and hygiene issues at household leveland opportunities should be given to community-based committees to manage water services.

Cost recovery can only be implemented successfully when customers are satisfied that theyare getting value for their money. Therefore the pre-conditions for cost recovery are:

• The service must be reliable• The water quality must be acceptable• The level of service must be appropriate• An appropriate revenue collecting and

accounting system must be in place.• Unaccounted-for water must be controlled• There must be customer acceptance of the cost

recovery options used and of the revenue col-lecting authority.

• Customers must know that water will be disconnected if bills are not paid.

In order to succeed in cost recovery, LocalGovernment should make sure that new schemescharge for water from day one so as to grow a cul-ture of payment for services. •

Above: Pre-paid metre standpipe tariff option atQanda Village, Tsolo District in the Kei District Council.

Top left: Standpipe used on a flat rate tariff optionat Minga Village, Tsolo District in the Kei DistrictCouncil.Murder halts QUMBU water project

-OBITUARY-

Amanz’abantu regrets to report the murder of aservice provider employee, Mr. Putshu Miya, whowas employed at the Gqukunga Water SupplyProject in the Qumbu area.

Work at the project was temporarily suspended asthis incident formed part of a pattern of criminalactivities in the area. The community is initiatingmeasures to protect Amanz’abantu personnel work-

ing in the area. The suspects are still at large.Amanz’abantu sends its condolences to the family ofMr

.

Miya.•