Cape town: The Minister of Water and Sanitation, Pemmy Majodina, has announced the establishment of a national Water Sector Anti-Corruption Forum as part of intensified efforts to combat crime, corruption, and sabotage within South Africa's water sector. Presenting the department's Budget Vote in Parliament on Friday, Majodina identified water mafias-organised criminal networks engaged in crime, corruption, and sabotage of water infrastructure-as one of the central threats to water service delivery.
According to South African Government News Agency, the Forum was launched on 5 March 2026, in partnership with the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), to coordinate a multi-stakeholder response to corruption. It involves law enforcement, government, the private sector, and civil society to prevent, detect, investigate, and respond to corruption within the sector.
The Minister also announced a nationwide programme to accelerate access to water services for unserved communities, particularly in rural areas. The programme aims to implement rapid, cost-effective interventions such as groundwater development, spring protection, and rainwater harvesting, alongside extensions of existing water supply systems. Over 2,600 settlements without reliable potable water have been identified, and projects are being packaged to prioritize grant funding and mobilize resources.
In the Eastern Cape, 14 borehole projects are underway across 16 communities, with additional spring protection initiatives in partnership with the Department of Agriculture. In KwaZulu-Natal, 28 boreholes and two spring protection projects are progressing.
Majodina also addressed water services challenges in metropolitan areas, highlighting key infrastructure projects such as the upgrade of the Klipdrift Water Treatment Works in Hammanskraal and the Welbedacht Pipeline in Mangaung. The Welbedacht Pipeline's Phase 1 was completed in June 2025, with a 71-km expansion in advanced planning for 2027 to 2032.
To tackle capacity constraints, Majodina revealed that the department's overall vacancy rate stood at 6.79% as of March 2026, with a higher rate of 15.8% in critical engineering and scientific positions. Over the past financial year, 116 technical positions were filled, with the Learning Academy playing a crucial role in building future capacity by awarding bursaries to over 1,000 young people.
On the global front, South Africa is leading in the African Union's Africa Investments Programme, aimed at increasing investment in the water sector. The UN appointed South Africa and France to co-chair a theme on investment in water for the 2026 United Nations Water Conference, co-hosted by the UAE and Senegal. The investment theme is one of six themes of the UN Water Conference.