Minister of Water and Sanitation Gugile Nkwinti says the Giyani Water Project is high on the priority list of parliament.  

Speaking at a fact-finding visit to Giyani recently the minister said the project would be reprioritised in terms of the community’s requirements as the government needed to turn the project around including conducting work on the 38 villages that are still unserviced.

The minister said the point of the visit was to hear from the community so that he could have a clear way forward articulated on the project. During the visit community members raised numerous issues in relation to the project and water supply in the region.

Some issues raided included that the installation of pipes has yet to result in water availability as anticipated. They also noted that over a six year period the water supply was still intermittent and that the Mopani District Municipality and Greater Giyani Local Municipality till need to share capacity according to needs.

According to the community the pipe still bypass some villages in order to supply water elsewhere and there are still boreholes around Blackwater that need refurbishment. The community highlighted that water supply from Nwamitwa Dam should also be prioritised, and boreholes around Kremetart do not function.

In closing Minister Nkwinti thanked the community for their input and said they would allow him to speak with confidence around matters of the Giyani Water Project during his Department’s budget vote speech.