In response to Johannesburg’s ongoing water crisis which has reached a critical point, with communities across the city experiencing severe service disruptions, the Civic Association for Democracy and Equality (CADE) has issued an urgent call for an emergency declaration, demanding immediate intervention from the City’s authorities.
CADE will lead a protest outside the city council offices in Braamfontein tomorrow at 9.30am, as councilors discuss Johannesburg’s budget. The demonstration aims to push for a budget that prioritizes equitable water access and infrastructure repair rather than neglecting the needs of the City’s most vulnerable communities.
CADE’s demands for water justice
CADE, a coalition of over 30 civic groups, has outlined a set of urgent demands, highlighting the city’s failure to provide equitable access to water. Their core demands include:
- Increase Free Basic Water Allocation to 100 litres per person per day for all residents.
- Ensure free water supply to the poorest households based on a municipal indigent list co-produced by communities and the city.
- End water privatization by scrapping Johannesburg Water and placing water services directly under the City of Johannesburg.
- Abolish water tankers and community standpipes as long-term solutions—every household must have piped water as a basic service. Stop unfair water cutoffs and disconnections, particularly in informal settlements.
- Ensure community participation in water service decision-making.
CADE argues that decades of underfunding and mismanagement have led to the current crisis, with the city losing over 35% of potable water to leaks while failing to make the necessary infrastructure investments. The R15 billion budgets underspend over the past ten years has exacerbated the issue, leaving communities to bear the brunt of the crisis.
A broader call to action
In addition to Thursday’s protest, CADE is in discussions with other civic groups to organize a larger Day of Action in the coming weeks. This movement aims to hold city officials accountable and demand a clear, democratic, and sustainable plan for addressing the water crisis.
GLOBE POST encourages community action
Johannesburg’s Ward 120, like many parts of the City, faces a tsunami of service delivery failures. GLOBE POST encourages residents to support this civic action and work collectively to prevent the area from further deterioration into a neglected slum. Historically, civic action in the 1980s and 1990s played a crucial role in transforming the then Daxina for full services like the police station, post office and other services. All those efforts have been reversed due to years of neglect. Now, as service delivery collapses, residents must once again unite to fight for their constitutional right to water and reliable power supply.
Take action now
CADE has made it clear: Johannesburg must declare a state of emergency and adopt an equitable, people-first approach to resolving the crisis. Residents, businesses, and civil society must demand that the city budget reflects the urgency of this situation—water is not a privilege, it is a right.
For more information, contac:
Rehad Desai | Tel: +27 83 997 9204 or Peter Monethe | Tel: +27 64 924 0514
