I have requested an urgent meeting with Cyril Ramaphosa to discuss defeating Day Zero
29 January 2018
I have written to Cyril Ramaphosa, in his capacity as Leader of Government Business, requesting an urgent meeting to discuss how we can best work together to tackle the immediate drought crisis in the City of Cape Town, and to defeat Day Zero.
Ramaphosa announced last week that he intends to assemble a team to tackle this crisis. I welcome the Deputy President’s intentions, and I am willing to work with anyone who is committed to avoiding Day Zero - regardless of political affiliation.
It is no secret that the drought crisis in the City of Cape Town is unprecedented. I have assembled a Disaster Response Team, comprising of members of our respective governments’, to effectively respond to the situation and to lead our efforts to defeat Day Zero. As such, I would like to ensure maximum co-ordination between various players, so that we can avoid Day Zero together. Therefore it is crucial that the Minister of Finance, Malusi Gigaba, and the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Nomvula Mokonyane, are also part of this meeting to address the financing model for water supply, and national government's plans around funding and bulk water infrastructure.
While the Cape Town drought crisis is the one that requires the most urgent attention, it is not the only drought crisis in South Africa. I would therefore also like to discuss with the Deputy President how best we can collaborate and tackle other water crises across the country – where water infrastructure projects are behind schedule, or non-existent.