Dry July! A term coined by the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality in the Eastern Cape is becoming a frightening reality for the people of Gqeberha.
The average dam water levels have hit an all-time low of 11% and no significant rain is expected any time soon.
Droughts are especially devastating to crops and livestock.
The SABC News spoke to subsistence farmers in Motherwell, who fear they may lose the little they have.
Proactive in his efforts, the Executive Mayor of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, Nqaba Bhanga announced that they would supply free water for non-human consumption.
This would provide some relief for those who can afford to transport it. But for subsistence farmers who can barely afford to feed their livestock, it’s not much of a help.
“I would not be able to afford to hire a bakkie or a truck to fetch water because I’m a pensioner and I have to eat and do everything from the pension money,” says one concerned farmer.
“We are situated here very far from the provided water. It would be good if we were to get assistance with bringing water closer and putting water tanks here,” adds another concerned farmer.
The municipality says it has made provision for farmers who can’t afford to transport the water themselves.
“The municipality has plans for urban farmers within the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro. If there are farmers who seek assistance from the municipality they must approach our Department of Urban Agriculture where they will be assisted. But there are criteria that they will have to follow, where we will vet them just to check if they are legit urban farmers within the metro. We do have borehole drilling among other plans,” says spokesperson, Mthubanzi Mniki.
The municipality has again urged residents to use water sparingly, saying it is one of the few factors that can be controlled.
Calls for intervention as Kouga dam water levels drop:
