Sustainable Water Provision in Informal Settlements: A Developmental Challenge for Urban South Africa

Abstract

Sustainable human development is premised upon the accessibility and availability of socio-economic services. Equally important is sustainable access to water, which is intrinsically a backbone to life’s sustenance. Inevitably, every dimension of life depends on the availability of water, be it social, economic, biological, physical or environmental. Consequently, inadequate water provision and the proliferation of informal settlements have dominated the agendas of a variety of developmental initiatives. The amalgamation of the two phenomena gives birth to diverse urban challenges ranging from, amongst others, urban socio-economic fragmentation environmental pollution, deficient sanitation that manifests into poor health, to hazardous squalid living conditions within informal settlements. Despite the implementation of populous policies that seek to promote better water provision and equitable urban development in South Africa, water provision in informal settlements remains a hefty challenge. Theoretically, the paper demonstrates the relationship between water provision in informal settlements and the living conditions therein. It argues that sustainable water provision in informal settlements significantly determines the level of well-being and living conditions. Therefore, the paper makes a recommendation for the adoption and promotion of sustainable water provision in South Africa’s informal settlements as a measure of improving the living conditions therein and reducing the urban socio-economic ills attendant thereto. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n25p102