Controlling Cape Town’s poor through water management devices: the case of Saxonsea, Atlantis
Year: 2013
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Access to water is critical for survival and well-being.Current debates on water in South Africa are dominated by the human rights and neo-liberal approaches.The human rights approach advocates for water to be treated as a public good to ensure that everyone has access to it because without water, there is no life.On the other hand, in the neo-liberal approach water is regarded as an economic good to reflect its true cost and is managed through marketbased mechanisms that encourage its efficient use.The City of Cape Town installed water management devices in Saxonsea, Atlantis as a solution to water scarcity in poor households and to aid cost recovery measures.The water management devices, initiated within the neoliberal paradigm, have been marketed as convenient tools that 'assist' users to manage their daily water consumption and thus reduce their debt.Using a human rights framework this study examined the impact of the City's water management strategies, specifically the water management devices, on selected households in Saxonsea.The impact of cost recovery policies on poor households was interrogated in the light of government's distributional and procedural equity in service delivery.The main issues arising from the study were lack of consultation, inadequate information, and perception of powerlessness.The study concludes that although water management devices have contributed to significant improvements in water saving, poor households are burdened with the responsibility of saving water.If the idea is to save water across the board, this regimen should be extended to all water users and not targeted at poor households only.
Author: Tamsanqa Matose
Language: English
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1136776115