The progressive realisation of the right to water and sanitation is provided for in South Africa’s Constitution and the International Covenant of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which was ratified by the state in 2015. The right to sanitation is not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution- as opposed to the right to water, which is- but is provided in the Bill of Rights under the right to housing, as interpreted by the Constitutional Court in the Government of the Republic of South Africa v. Grootboom. Despite great gains by government with regard to the provision of these basic services, many people in the country still do not enjoy these rights. Service delivery protests, emerging from lack of access, are rife; the Department of Water and Sanitation is in a financial crisis and some parts of the country have recently been confronted with the scarcity of water.

SPII0818 - Working Paper 18_Print