The Department of Water and Sanitation has thus far eradicated 78.8% of the bucket system in formal settlements in South Africa, Cabinet said on Thursday.

“Seven provinces have performed excellently with an average 90% eradication. Those that have achieved total eradication in formal settlements are KwaZulu-Natal, North West, Mpumalanga and Gauteng.

“The Western Cape has reached 99.8% clearance. From a target of 26 120 for the Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, North West and Free State, some 11 650 systems have been completed to date,” Cabinet said in a statement.

Cabinet noted these developments as the country observes National Water Week 2016 from 14 to 22 March under the theme ‘Water for people, water by people’.

The week will profile water as a human right by raising awareness of the plight of people who do not have access to potable water.

Cabinet said while the recent rainfall brought some relief, the impact of the drought continues to be felt in some parts of the country.

“South Africans must continue to use water sparingly and implement water saving initiatives. Government has since provided R1 billion to deal with the drought crisis,” said Cabinet.