Yet in parts of Johannesburg, the lived experience tells another story. In 2025, 33.7% of households have experienced water interruptions. And while 97% of metro households have taps installed, the presence of infrastructure has not guaranteed reliability. Pressure drops without warning. Entire suburbs go days,  sometimes weeks, without supply.

Podcast Party SA contributor and host of This Is Politics, Justice Malala, captured the public frustration bluntly on X: “Parts of the suburb of Melville in Johannesburg has not had water in three weeks. All across the country, cities and towns are experiencing the same ‘shortages’. I honestly don’t know how the ANC manages to stay in power when there is so much despair and decay in the country.”

That despair is not abstract. It is rooted in structural weakness. Over 40% of water loss in Gauteng is due to leaks, meaning nearly half of treated water never reaches consumers. Meanwhile, infrastructure projects face delays of 25 to 64 months on average, postponements that compound vulnerability rather than resolve it.

In response, the Gauteng Provincial Government has established an Intergovernmental Relations (IGR) Water Operations Centre to stabilise supply and coordinate across spheres of government. “As a province, we believe that we can tackle the challenges facing our people through cooperation and collaboration, and not through finger-pointing,” said MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Mr Jacob Mamabolo.

The creation of a “war room” signals urgency. But urgency must translate into outcomes. Phumi Mashigo spoke to Dr Ferrial Adam of WaterCAN, this week to helps us interrogate what has changed since last year’s SONA promise, and whether accountability mechanisms are strong enough to move Gauteng from crisis management to systemic reform. You can watch the episode here.

Because the real measure of progress is not a statement. It is the sound of water flowing consistently from a tap.