Johannesburg, known as the economic center of South Africa, is contemplating the imposition of stricter water restrictions due to challenges posed by outdated infrastructure and increasing demand.

At present, the city is operating under level 1 restrictions, which forbid residents from watering their gardens and using municipal water for cleaning hard surfaces from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Read: Sarb raises concerns regarding poor infrastructure

Logan Munsamy, the Operations Manager at Johannesburg Water, remarked in an interview with Newzroom Afrika that these current restrictions are “not entirely effective.” He indicated that there are discussions about increasing the restrictions, potentially to level 2 or beyond, which would prohibit the use of municipal water for irrigating gardens, refilling swimming pools, and using hoses for car washing or pavement cleaning.

The South African government is grappling with a worsening water crisis, largely due to years of insufficient investment and neglect. In October, Rand Water, Africa’s largest bulk-water supplier, warned that Gauteng province — which includes Johannesburg and the capital, Pretoria — could experience severe water shortages unless cities take immediate action to lower their water consumption.

Read: Clashes between Johannesburg residents and police amid water shortages

On Wednesday, residents in Johannesburg’s Westbury area confronted police over a water outage. The Democratic Alliance party delivered a memo to Executive Mayor Dada Morero, reporting that some households have been without water for as long as 70 days.

The central bank of South Africa has pointed out that the decline of water, transport, and other infrastructure represents a serious threat to the country’s financial stability.

Read: The alarming decline of Joburg in 10 short years, visually documented

The deterioration of water infrastructure continues as South Africa slowly recovers from a prolonged energy crisis, during which the national power utility implemented rolling blackouts lasting up to 12 hours each day.

© 2024 Bloomberg

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