Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu says her department has procured 41 000 water tanks which have been distributed across the country to ensure water supply during the lockdown.
Schools, churches and police stations have also been identified as places where people would also be able to access water.
In addition, digital technology will be used to ensure that people have access to water, she said, adding that “these inputs will strengthen our capability to be proactive and ensure that we have deployed adequate water provision to designated areas”.
Speaking at a National Command Council briefing in Pretoria on Saturday, she said her department managed to procure the water tanks which were distributed to different communities in two days.
Turning to informal settlements, she said “the threat and risk of coronavirus in our informal settlements is real and again, we have to make haste so that we don’t find ourselves overwhelmed”.
Hygiene
She said mass evictions would not be stopped in very densely populated areas and added that her department identified 29 densely populated areas in the country.
Sisulu encouraged South Africans to observe good personal hygiene practices.
She has appealed to private businesses and South Africans to work with the government to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus by ensuring that people have access to water.
But, she appealed to water licence users to help the communities refill water tanks.
“We would like communities to allocate one person per day who will guard the water tanks and ensure that they are safe and have no leaks,” Sisulu said.
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