WATER SERVICES AMENDMENT BILL HEADS TO PARLIAMENT

WATER SERVICES AMENDMENT BILL HEADS TO PARLIAMENT

• 01 October 2025
• Water & Sanitation
• SA Legal Academy

Please note: According to parliamentary papers, the Bill was tabled on 3 October 2025.

The Department of Water & Sanitation has gazetted an explanatory summary of the Water Services Amendment Bill, which is expected to be introduced in Parliament shortly.

According to a media statement on 22 July and 6 August 2025 Cabinet meetings at which the Bill was considered and approved for tabling, it seeks to:

• strengthen the regulation and management of water services
• improve compliance with the 1997 Water Services Act
• introduce reforms intended to clarify the functions of water services authorities and water services providers
• address the ‘poor performance of water service providers’, and
• introduce:
  • norms and standards to guide interventions intended to improve service delivery
  • minimum standards to be met by water services providers, and
  • offences for non-compliance.

Apparently, municipalities tend to blur the functions of water services authorities and providers – possibly contributing to poor service delivery. The Bill seeks to address this by making water services authorities responsible for enforcing the minimum standards to be met by water services providers.

The Cabinet statement also refers to provisions in the Bill introducing ‘a legal requirement’ in terms of which a water services authority may only appoint a water services provider with the ‘minimum level of competency’ required for an operating license issued by the department.

• explanatory memorandum
• media statement on 22 July and 6 August 2025 Cabinet meetings

Published by SA Legal Academy Policy Watch

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