Urgent action is required to stop municipalities’ ever-increasing debt to water boards, the Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation said on Wednesday.

As at June 2024, the municipal debt to water boards is R22.36-billion, equating to an average increase of 151% between 2019 to 2024.

The committee said that the long-standing challenge had long been discussed and urgent action was now unavoidable because of the impact of the debt on the entire water value chain.

Some boards, such as Vaal Central Water and Magalies Water, face bankruptcy in the next six to 12 months, as they do not have sufficient cash resources to pay their operating activities and pay for their raw water.

“The magnitude of this problem is devastating to the cash flow of water boards and negatively affects the entire water value chain. Finding solutions to this unsustainable challenge is urgent and cannot be deferred any further,” said Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation chairperson Leon Basson, warning that if the situation was not urgently resolved, the boards may be unable to provide water.

While the committee acknowledges the Water and Sanitation Minister’s proactive engagements with provincial governments, water boards and municipalities, the committee believes that engagements without action will spell disaster for communities depending on these water boards for water.

Municipalities’ inability to pay their debt also has a negative impact downstream, as water boards are then unable to pay the Department of Water and Sanitation for the extraction of raw water.

“The socioeconomic impact of the debt is far-reaching and has the potential of crippling the water value chain, as it will affect the ability to perform necessary maintenance, businesses will be greatly affected and access to water will be made difficult,” Basson emphasised.

The committee praised those municipalities that have endeavoured to settle their accounts with water boards and highlighted that the payment of services is necessary to maintain the quality of service they receive.

Further, while the committee acknowledged attempts to write off old debt, it cautioned that this should be done with the provision that municipalities commit to adequately servicing their current obligations.