Taps Not Tankers — Durban's Water Recovery Plan

The diagnosis

This isn't a drought. It's a governance failure.

Ten years ago Durban's water losses stood at roughly 33%. Today they exceed 65% — among the worst of any major South African metro. Cape Town, by comparison, loses about 24%. The city is paying to purchase water that never reaches its customers.

The city is buying water and watching it disappear before it reaches a home.

Floods have damaged infrastructure, but they don't explain two decades of sustained losses. This points to deeper failures in maintenance, planning, budgeting and political oversight.

R50bn outstanding municipal debt the DA plan would aggressively recover to help fund repairs

~Five plumbing teams reportedly servicing entire regions of several wards, after private contractors were terminated

R1m+ added to a senior water official's salary package on promotion — despite years of worsening losses

30+ contravention notices issued to the city over sewage spills, alongside ongoing legal action

DA supporters holding signs reading 'Bring Back The Water' and 'Water Tankers Are Not Permanent Solutions'

Durban residents rallying behind the plan

Taps not tankers

The 10-point water recovery plan

An emergency programme built on three principles: invest more to fix the infrastructure, professionalise the department, and hold people accountable.

Invest to fix

Professionalise

Hold accountable

Invest R10 billion to rebuild the water network

Immediately commit no less than R10 billion to repairing and replacing failing infrastructure, funded by cutting non-essential spend, recovering the city's roughly R50 billion in outstanding debt, and maximising existing grant funding.

Protect water revenue

Ring-fence all trading-services revenue and prohibit cross-subsidising water revenue to unrelated municipal functions. Money collected for water must be spent on water.

Put performance on the scoreboard

Set clear, measurable targets for senior managers on reducing losses, repairing leaks and improving response times — with real consequences when targets are missed.

Learn from municipalities getting it right

Partner with municipalities that have successfully cut water losses. Identify what works, adapt it, and implement it — Durban doesn't need to reinvent the wheel.

Bring in the private sector

Establish urgent partnerships with experienced engineering, technology and infrastructure companies for the specialist skills and capacity the municipality lacks.

Investigate the "water mafia"

A full investigation into procurement, contractors, illegal connections and internal municipal failures — engaging the President and the SIU where necessary. No political connections. No protected officials. No sacred cows.

Reinvest every saving

Every rand saved through reduced losses is ring-fenced and reinvested — into pipe replacement, reticulation upgrades, reservoir improvements and further leak-reduction.

Recruit the best technical skills

Attract experienced water engineers, project managers and technicians. Durban needs engineers who can fix the system — not bureaucrats who can explain why it can't be fixed.

Build a rapid-response repair force

New vehicles, plant and equipment, plus additional skilled plumbers, to establish dedicated teams that respond to major bursts and leaks around the clock.