Angry residents blocked all entrances and exits to an important South African town

Frustrated residents in the border town of Zeerust in the North West staged a prolonged protest, blocking all entrances and exits to the town over persistent water shortages.

Residents said they had not had a drop of water for over a week, a situation far from isolated.

The demonstrations, which lasted several days, have since ended. However, while water starts to trickle in, many taps remain dry.

On Thursday, 20 February 2025, the substation at the Zeerust Water Treatment Works had a power failure at the Rietpoort pump station, affecting the water supply to the residents.

Although a generator was installed to ensure water supply during load-shedding and other power outages, it cannot handle the seven pumps, leaving residents to face water rationing.

Eskom attended to the power failure the next day, but a massive backlog had already been created by then.

Residents took to the streets to vent their frustrations, blocking off key entrance and exit points to the town.

They say that despite existing boreholes and reservoirs capable of supplying water, the government keeps hiring contractors instead of implementing a sustainable solution.

Community leader Pilot Mosothwane criticised the government for spending tens of millions on boreholes with no results.

Researcher and political analyst Kenneth Mokgatlhe said that he went to the Ramotshere Moiloa Local Municipality, and “everybody took a day off. The building was literally empty.”

“That’s the quality of leadership our Municipality has, that under this challenging time you go to honeymoon. Things have to change if we want to improve the quality of our lives.”

Ramotshere Moiloa Municipality is responsible for the water supply to Zeerust and the surrounding areas, but Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality (NMMDM) is responsible for the bulk water supply and the maintenance of Zeerust Water Treatment Works.

NMMDM Mayor Khumalo Molefe said the local municipality’s water infrastructure has been facing electrical problems, resulting in the loss of four boreholes, the primary water source. The district had activated water trucks.

The Mayor acknowledges that power outages will inevitably affect water supply not only in Zeerust but throughout the district and potentially the province.

“We will do everything in our power to ensure that our people get water at all material times,” he said.

However, Ramotshere councillor Imaan Sulliman said that the Executive Mayor of Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality “assured the community that water tankers would be dispatched, but this never materialised, nor did he appear for a scheduled meeting with the community.”

Resident Hennie Pretorius explained that for the past week, he had been taking water from his personal tanker to give to the nearby villages as they had not been provided.

When the connections were made by Eskom, they erronously put the connections in reverse, causing pumps to gush out much-needed water for the communities.

Zeerust struggling

Recently, BusinessTech travelled to the small border town and was confronted with the harsh realities of everyday living for residents.

Speaking to residents and businesses, it was apparent that they face severe service delivery problems due to mismanagement at the municipal level.

Issues include a malfunctioning sewage treatment plant polluting water sources, poor road conditions, inadequate waste collection, and inconsistent water and electricity supply.

These failures decimated local businesses and crippled tourism, leading to widespread economic hardship, with residents struggling to meet even the most basic needs.

Water supply collapsing

The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) manages South Africa’s water resources through policy, regulation, and bulk water management.

Water Service Authorities (WSAs), essentially municipalities, deliver water and sanitation services to communities within their jurisdictions. The DWS sets the framework, and WSAs provide the services.

The DWS provides a thorough evaluation of how municipalities are managing non-revenue water (NRW) — the water lost through leaks, theft, and inadequate billing practices – through the No Drop Report.

With a score of 100% being considered “excellent,” the Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality received a No Drop score of 0%.

DWS said this is because it “failed to comply with regulatory requirements as no information was submitted for the audit period.”

Issues persist across cities and towns nationwide, but the mining and agricultural province of the North West is a prime example of where water woes have gut-punched residents and businesses.

Six WSAs in the province were defined as being “critical,” one as “poor,” and two as “average.” One did not provide any data.

For example, residents of Maquassi Hills Municipality, a couple of hours south of Zeerust, told BusinessTech that they have been without water for 10 days.

Magalies Water manages the water supply, which comes from the Vaal Central Waterboard. Water is distributed on a 12-hour rotational basis; only after the reservoir reaches 34% capacity can it be directed.

“If we report a leakage, it takes a day or two for them to come out, and when they arrive here, they don’t have the necessary equipment” said councillor Don Van Zyl.

“On a daily base more than half of Maquassi Hills is without water,” and expresses concern that “Maquassi Hills is gonna burn within a day or two” due to residents’ frustration and insufficient communication from the waterboard.

South Africa’s water infrastructure in tatters

Overall, South Africa’s water infrastructure is in a dire state:

• Only 4 WSAs scored above 90% (Excellent);
• 8 WSAs achieved a score between 80% and 90% (Good);
• 65 WSAs scored below 50% (Critical to poor);
• 24 failed to submit any relevant information for the audit.