Ministers urge SA to conserve water

226 Meulspruit Dam has dried up completely and leaving thousands of fishes dead, farmers are battling to feed their cattle and some cattle has died due to the drought in Ficksburg, Free State is one of the provinces which it is declared disaster area. Picture: Itumeleng English 12,11,2015

226 Meulspruit Dam has dried up completely and leaving thousands of fishes dead, farmers are battling to feed their cattle and some cattle has died due to the drought in Ficksburg, Free State is one of the provinces which it is declared disaster area. Picture: Itumeleng English 12,11,2015

Published Nov 16, 2015

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Johannesburg - South African dams were at least 10 percent lower this year compared with the same period last year as drought and the heat wave threaten the country’s food security and the stability of the economy.

On Friday, an inter-ministerial team addressed the nation on the state of drought, charging that some dams were sitting at critical levels and asked for South Africans to use water sparingly.

Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane said dams in Kwazulu-Natal, which is one of the hardest hit provinces by the drought, were sitting at an average of 57 percent with Hazelmere, Goedetrouw, Hluhluwe and Klipfontein dams at critical levels.

Mokonyane said that the drought had affected 2.7 million households in the country or 18 percent of the population.

“Drought is a natural phenomenon, which cannot be prevented,” Mokonyane said.

“However, as government, we are fully conscious of the responsibility we bear to mitigate its economic and social impact on the country and its people, taking into account that water is a scarce resource in South Africa,” Mokonyane added.

This month, the government declared Kwazulu-Natal, the North West, the Free State, Limpopo and Mpumalanga as disaster areas as farmers warned that crop production in the country had gone down by nearly 70 percent leaving the country open to importing maize from other countries.

Food supplies fall

GrainSA said the price of white maize had gone up by more than 60 percent as a result of the drought and yellow maize had increased by more than 40 percent.

GrainSA economist Wandile Sihlobo said the situation would be felt more by poor households.

“If you think that white maize is a staple food for the majority of South Africans so any hike in its prices has an impact on them,” said Sihlobo.

“Yellow maize is used mainly in animal feed and that puts the cost on the end product so you will also have an increase in foods such as meats and dairy.”

Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Minister Senzeni Zokwana said farmers were already losing livestock and crops as a result of the drought and the government could also be forced to to import maize and wheat.

“South Africa has declined stock levels of white maize until the end of April 2016,” Zokwana said.

“Yellow maize stocks will be very tight and may need to be supplemented. White maize is the major staple food for many people. The average maize yield has reduced by 5.3 tons per hectare – the lowest yield since 2008,” Zokwana added.

Sasfin Securities portfolio manager Alec Abraham said the drought’s effect on food prices was still yet to be felt.

Abraham said retailers had issued trading updates that had shown low inflation numbers because of the competitive market but the relief could be short lived.

“You have got retailers investing in price to try and keep feet coming through the door so I think there is a little bit of a window before we start to see some big price increases coming through,” said Abraham.

“We haven’t seen it yet in any of the results but then again those results are backward looking, I think there is a bit of a lag before we start seeing that.”

Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Pravin Gordhan said the government was concerned about the impact the drought and water shortages had had particularly on households, hospitals and schools.

Gordhan said the government could not address the situation alone and needed assistance from other stakeholders.

Said Gordhan: “It is for all of us in the country to take this situation very seriously. The water sector cannot survive without the strategic partnerships by all stakeholders including communities to use water sparingly. We therefore call for partnerships to preserve and act to save water now.”

SUNDAY INDEPENDENT

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