Water and Privatization in South Africa
Posted on December 12 2003 |
Background
The histroy of SA is not different from other third world countries/developing countries. SA has also been exposed to colonialism, industrialization and globalisation. The infrastructural development that took place during this era was serving the interest of the colonial powers and the capitalists (serving their econ interests).
Different forms of struggles were waged by the poor in SA against privatization f water and other basic services as water being a natural resourcece and rights to access
The Civil Society demands being:
• access to clean and healthy water
• water not a commodity but a right
• free water for all
The rural areas being the most affected by the issue exposed to serious health problems and diseases, which resulted into high rate of deaths because of scarcity of water and poor access to clean and healthy water.
The few rural areas that have access to tap water (clean and healthy water) are those that have waged struggles against the government. The water system that exists in these communitiies is communal tap system where more than 20 families use one tap. There are those that are still accessing water from rivers. Rivers sometimes not running with stagnant and unhealthy water.
The Latter Presented the following problems:
• continuous breakages and technical faults to communal taps because of over-use and poor security
• women travelling long distances to access water exposed to abuse and harrassment
• Long cues and scramble for water
• Poor starving in the process
• Wastage of water as communal taps were not monitored and the government takes time to repair leakages
These communities pay water services, they pay flat rate to the local municipalities (flat amount irrespective of how much water is used.
The aforesaid suggests that rural communities strongly advocate for access to clean and healthy water.
Case Study of Water Campaign in Peelton
Peelton community in the eastern cape, SA has also been the target of circumstances. This community has to wage a long struggle/water campaign from 1996-2002. The struggle was engineered by women as they were the most affected.
Different struggles to engage the enemy were employed:
• sit-ins, marches and lobbying government officials
• the victory was in 2002 where communcal taps were installed and they continue fighting for household taps
Water and Agriculture
The rural areas in SA mainly depend on agriculture for their livelihood. The unavailability of water for irrigation purposes has a negative impact. The poor emerging susbsistence farmers without the necessarily facilities to access water from riders/other sources suffers the most. This has a direct impact not only on the local economic development but also to national economy. The while commercial farmers who are subsidized by the government, care less about issues of food security of the country. Their farming is export oriented and they believe also in capital accumulation. They are also in alliance with MNCs and TNCs as they use these exported seeds and crops (GM seeds) threatening the production process of the emerging subsistence farmers.
The land organizations, e.g., National Land Committee also play an important role in their land struggles, as in the process highlighting for land rights and access. They also fight for access to water and rights. These organizations that include trust for community outreach and education defines land as all components that argues in it that includes soil, water, seas and IT resources, minerals and natural vegetation (natural resources).
Privatization and its Implications
In the urban areas where there is access to clean and healthy ater, the different form of struggle is waged. The expansion of globalization where developing countries’ governments are pressured to priavtized basic services for capitalists to accumulate capital, forced the CS to accumulate capital, forced the civil society to advocate struggles against privatization of basic services.
The argument presented by the WB-IMF is as follows:
• privatization will promote better and efficient service delivery
• States will be able to pay their national debts
But the result is the opposite. The Poor are exposed to higher service rates. The capitalists accumulate more capital and states are exposed to more debts. The poor fail to pay their service fees and this results to water cuts and other basic services.
The Rate of the NGO sector
• Mobilize and organize communities around these issues
• Educate communities on policies, legislation so that communities can take up informed actions and campaigns
• Capability building of communities and other NGOs around globalization and issues of national debt. Alternative information development centre playing a vital role (leadership building)
• Alternative information centre also playing a vital role in material development and dissemination of info
• Prepares communities to play proactive roles in intersecting with water bills and other bills before policies are passed, to ensure that policies serve the interests of the poor and lobby the government effectively
• The NGOs themselves also lobby government around these issues
• RDSN also plays an important role in coordinating water campaign activities
• In the coastal areas, eg Western Cape. TCOE is mobilizing and organizing fishers around fishing rights and how globalizations impacts on the fishing sector. This is enabling the poor communities to access marine resources for their own livelihood
• Strategically inetgrate gender issues in all its development work
Forward with the struggle against globalization, privatization and debt!
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