Ten 18 000 litre water tankers have been handed over to alleviate the drought stricken Eastern Cape province by Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane.

The minister said, during a visit to Mbashe on Tuesday: “We are here to deliver these 18 000 litre tankers; and also refurbish 25 boreholes. There will be also be a Municipal Water Infrastructure Grant for the Eastern Cape.” This is an effort to help alleviate the drought situation in the province.

“At the same time there will be supply of water from the Katse Dam in Lesotho to Aliwal North, the development of the Eastern Cape Water Master Plan, a new scheme for the Amathole District Municipality within the next six – eight months. There will be a provincial water and sanitation functional coordinating committee convened by the provincial COGTA,” she said.

There have been water supply disruptions in a number of areas within the province that caused a great inconvenience to consumers and negatively impacted on the Christmas celebrations in many households. There have also been disruptions in Mdantsane in Buffalo City, Tsolo in the Mhlontlo Municipality, Norwood in Mthatha and villages such as Colosa, Timane, and eCamagwini and Idutywa.

The delivery of water tankers in areas such as the Govan Mbeki township in Idutywa has been inconsistent and there has been limited information-sharing with communities on when and where to expect water.

The Minister was assured that disruptions in supply in Mdantsane and Norwood in Mthatha have since been resolved. There may be delays in pumping to higher lying areas in Mdantsane for instance but these will soon normalise as well.

“Because we represent a caring government, we have had to recall our teams and cancel any holiday plans to ensure that our people receive their due services accordingly. Service to our people is our priority,” said Minister Mokonyane.