Gauteng water woes | Deputy President visits facilities as Rand water boosts supply

Deputy President, Paul Mashatile, says Gauteng is making progress in addressing water outages across the province.

He conducted an oversight visit to Johannesburg’s water facilities in Midrand on Friday, following meetings with ministers and government officials to assess the state of water infrastructure.

Mashatile was informed that the bulk water supplier, Rand Water, had recovered its pumping capacity and that water supply would improve over time.

He was appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa as chairperson of the Water Task Team to tackle recurring outages in areas such as Melville, Soshanguve, and Parktown West, after residents protested and demanded that the water crisis be declared a national disaster earlier this month.

Today, I am conducting an Oversight Visit at Carlswald Reserviour Construction Site, Midrand, Gauteng Province.

The construction of the 20ml Carlswald Reservoir in Ward 112 is currently underway.

The visit follows a meeting that I had with Ministers and government officials… pic.twitter.com/A7KANErpV8

— Paul Mashatile🇿🇦 (@PMashatile) February 20, 2026

During the visit, Mashatile expressed satisfaction with the progress made with the measures put in place to address water outages in the province and the ongoing construction of a new reservoir in Midrand.

Meanwhile, residents in Hursthill and Auckland Park have raised concerns over discoloured, orange-reddish, and foul-smelling water. Johannesburg Water’s Nombuso Shabala confirmed that a technical team had been dispatched to investigate and collect samples for quality testing.

Hursthill residents in Johannesburg say they no longer trust water from the municipality. After the tap water was reddish on Thursday pic.twitter.com/zgHoCnvD7S

— Sbusiso Maphumulo (@IamsbusisoM) February 20, 2026

Johannesburg Water’s, Nombuso Shabala, confirmed that a technical team was dispatched to the affected areas to investigate and collect samples of the water for quality testing.

The utility advised residents not to drink the water and to use alternative sources until results are confirmed.

As part of urgent measures, the Department of Water and Sanitation has approved Rand Water’s application for a temporary water use license, allowing additional abstraction from the Integrated Vaal River System for four months. This intervention aims to stabilise Gauteng’s water supply.

Water and Sanitation Minister, Pemmy Majodina, said other measures would include fixing leaks in Johannesburg and Tshwane’s municipal distribution systems and removing illegal connections.

Written by: Realeboga Nke