DWS Meets with Kwanalu Advisory Council
The Kwanalu Advisory Council held an excellent strategic focus session in the last week of November with the Department of Water and Sanitation where a high-level delegation from the department presented Advisory Council members with a series of talks addressing the all-crucial water issues in the province.
Key focus areas presented and discussed included:
- The establishment of Catchment Management Agencies and Local Water Resource Management Institutions
- Verification and validation
- Water use efficiency
- Transferability of water use entitlements
- Raw Water Charges Consultations
- Deteriorating water quality
- Unlawful use of water
- Water Allocation Reform
- Relationship with Government
The focus session enabled the Advisory Council, which is made up of representatives from each District in the province, to participate and deliberate on water issues.
“It was quite evident that water is a critical resource and the agricultural sector will need to play a leading role in ensuring that water matters are addressed with importance. Various challenges still exist including municipalities’ service delivery, the verification and validation process, water quality, unlawful use of water etc. It is frequently said that the water challenge may well outweigh the matter of land and therefore it is essential that as a sector we are proactive and take the lead in addressing water issues,” said Sandy.
