By Johnathan Paoli
Johannesburg’s civil society is drawing a line in the sand, with communities across the metro describing the escalating water crisis as a recurring reminder of deep municipal decay that can no longer be ignored.
A coalition of civic organisations, environmental groups, and residents, led by the Joburg Water Forum, is expected to march on the Johannesburg City Council on 1 November, demanding immediate action to address persistent water outages, failing infrastructure, and mismanagement of funds.
“This crisis is threatening lives, livelihoods, and dignity. Hospitals, schools, and homes across the city are going dry. Water is not a privilege; it is a constitutional right. As water activists, we cannot remain silent any longer,” said Dr Ferrial Adam, WaterCAN executive director and spokesperson for the forum.
Johannesburg is now at what activists describe as a critical crossroads, with years of neglect, underfunding, corruption and political instability having weakened the city’s ability to manage basic services.
The breakdown of water infrastructure has become the most visible symptom of this decay, exposing a municipality stretched between technical failure and political paralysis.
Adam said the situation has reached a tipping point.
“As the most populous city in the country, Johannesburg’s deteriorating water infrastructure and management have brought it under scrutiny. Years of mismanagement and corruption have plunged the city into a water crisis that threatens its residents’ quality of life, economic stability, and future,” she said.
The Water Forum has said that the crisis is not merely technical but systemic, rooted in years of diverted budgets, broken accountability mechanisms, and the collapse of public trust.
While officials have promised interventions, including R800 million being injected into the ageing Commando System – a series of networks that receives and transports water — residents in places like Westbury, Crosby, Soweto and Lenasia continue to experience long, unpredictable outages.
The November protest is supported by a wide network of organisations, including the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, Climate Justice Coalition, Abahlali baseMjondolo, Defend Our Democracy and JhbCAN.
Adam said that all metro funds intended for maintenance and infrastructure upgrades should be ring-fenced and protected from diversion to other municipal priorities.
She called for the immediate restoration of R4 billion reportedly removed from Johannesburg Water’s accounts, insisting that this money “belongs to the people and must return to service delivery”.
The forum criticised the city for failing to begin construction on new reservoirs, including Meadowlands, Dunkeld and Crown Gardens, that were scheduled to start in July, as well as another five that should have commenced in October.
“Every delay costs the city another opportunity to stabilise its water system. Every day without water is a day without dignity,” Adam said.
Civil society groups are calling for the creation of a water oversight structure that would include representatives from communities, business and non-governmental organisations.
This, they say, would ensure that the city’s turnaround strategies are subjected to independent scrutiny and regular public reporting.
The demonstration will begin at 10am outside the Johannesburg City Council Building on Civic Boulevard, Braamfontein.
Organisers say it will be a peaceful protest aimed at drawing attention to the failures of municipal governance and demanding immediate reform.
“Johannesburg cannot continue to treat this crisis as a technical inconvenience. It is a human rights issue that demands political courage and decisive leadership,” Adam said.
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