WaterCAN has cautiously welcomed the Presidency’s National Water Action Plan but warned that its success will depend on whether a new presidential committee can enforce deadlines and accountability rather than becoming another layer of bureaucracy.

The organisation said in a statement issued on Saturday that the plan had been introduced as communities across South Africa faced prolonged water outages, deteriorating water quality, failing infrastructure and weak municipal accountability.

At the centre of the plan is the National Water Crisis Committee, known as Watercom, which will be chaired by the president. It is intended to coordinate the response across national government departments, provinces, municipalities and other water institutions, while monitoring implementation of the plan.

WaterCAN said stronger coordination might be necessary, but South Africa had previously introduced numerous strategies, committees and turnaround plans that had failed to produce lasting improvements.

The creation of Watercom would only be meaningful if

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