BRIEFING THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON WATER AND SANITATION ON THE TRANSFORMATION OF IRRIGATION BOARDS (Irrigation Board) Presented by: Mr D Mashitisho Director-General 20 June 2017 PRESENTATION TITLE Presented by: Name Surname Directorate Date

Acronyms Abbreviation Definition CCAW Co-ordinating Committee for Agricultural Water CMA Catchment Management Agency CMS Catchment Management Strategy DAFF Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries DRDLR Department of Rural Development and Land Reform DWS Department of Water and Sanitation HDIs Historically Disadvantage Individuals IWRM Integrated Water Resource Management IBs Irrigation Boards NDP National Development Plan NWA National Water Act NWRS National Water Resource Strategy O/M Operations and Maintenance RPF Poor Resource Farmers RWU Regional Water Utilities WMA Water Management Area WSA Water Services Authority WUA Water User Association WUL Water User Licence

Contents Section A Background to the existing status quo and transformation challenges Section B Approved policy positions & principles to reform Irrigation boards and water user associations SECTION C Departmental support programme to achieve transformation objectives

Section A Background to the existing status quo and transformation challenges

Background to Irrigation boards The irrigation boards originated from Irrigation and Conservation of Water Act, Act 8 of 1912, which was repealed and replaced by Water Act No 54 of 1956. Sec 79 (2) An irrigation board shall be a body corporate, capable of suing and being sued in its corporate name and of performing all such acts as are necessary for or incidental to the carrying out of its duties or the performance of its functions According to sec 89 some of their powers and functions were; to protect the sources of the water of any public stream in the said irrigation district; to prevent the waste of the water of any public stream in the said district; to prevent the leakage or flow of any public water from the surface into subterranean channels; to prevent any unlawful abstraction or storage of public water etc. to exercise general supervision over all public streams within the irrigation district Water Act 54 of 1956 promoted riparian rights system and vested most of the rights to water resources in commercial farmers in irrigation districts. Formed primarily in former irrigation districts– primary purpose was to support farming among poor white farmers Received govt. support in terms of infrastructure and start-up loans

Background to Water User Associations The 1956 Act was replaced by the National Water Act (Act 36 of 1998), which promotes transformation within the water sector and as such, all irrigation boards were to be transformed to new institutions called Water User Associations (Water User Associations) Water User Associations are established in terms of Chapter 8 of the National Water Act, (Act No 36 of 1998), To enable better participation by historically disadvantaged individuals in the management of water resource To provide a basis for local integrated management of water resources (benefit sharing ) But sec 98 (2)...an irrigation boards continues to exist until it is declared to be a Water User Association in terms of subsection (6) or until it is disestablished in terms of the law by or under which it was established, which law must, for the purpose of such disestablishment, be regarded as not having been repealed by this Act. Sub sec 6 -If the Minister accepts the proposal, the Minister must by notice in the Gazette - declare the board to be a water user association, give it a name, determine its area of operation and approve its constitution.

Historical institutional transformation

Govt water Schemes & map The 1956 Act still continued to protect riparian rights and also established govt. control areas where Irrigation Boards and later Water User Associations actively participated in the control of water resources.

Local WRM and its strategic benefit Change the way land and water resources are managed, so that their long-term productivity is optimised and sustained Support implementation of water allocation reform through water use monitoring and curb illegal water use to the economic and social well-being of all within the shared water resource environment Ensure a safe and high-quality supply of agricultural product through and integrated support plan form various departments Safeguard the livelihood s and well-being of farmers, farm workers and their families Ensure efficient water resource management & maintain healthy, functioning agricultural ecosystems Facilitate implementation of an Integrated support from various Departments plans Support the plan to mitigate and adapt to climate change at a local level.

Transformation: Components Access to Water Access to Land Capacity & skills Equal Opportunity

Key Transformation Challenges A) Water Resources availability Over allocation of resources – Verification and validation Most canals reached carrying capacity – additional demands difficult to serve Efficiencies vs. aging infrastructure – huge water losses Competing demands for agriculture and domestic food nexus B) Extent of Liability on infrastructure Some irrigation boards and privately financed infrastructure- have huge loans and debts -previously government funded infrastructure C) Fees and levies Affordability challenges for emerging farmers (repossession of land)

Key Transformation Challenges (cont…) D) Disconnect between water reforms, land reforms & support to emerging farmers (programmes not aligned) Lack of synergy between DWS, Agriculture, rural development and Land Affairs at programme level E) Capacity of Emerging farmers (HDIs) Lack of financial capacity to procure inputs and implements (do not have access to loans) Lack of technical and business know-how F) Governance issues Composition of Board dependant on water allocation ( land and water) Historically disadvantaged are not organised CMA required for regulation

Specific challenges for HDIs Not all beneficiaries of the land reform process aspire to be farmers - different support strategies are needed for different types of beneficiaries. The difficulty is accessing capital to finance operations – most historically disadvantaged individuals do not qualify for financial support from banks & end up leasing the land back to commercial farmers Credit risk and potential for loss of land due to failure to service debt arising from charges from Irrigation Boards and Water User Associations Lack of skills transfer from mentorship/strategic partner arrangements

Section B Approved policy positions & principles to reform Irrigation Boards and Water User Associations

Context towards policy review Water Act No 54 of 1956 National Water Act, 1998 (Act No 36 of 1998) National Development Plan National Policy Review Institutional Reforms and Realignment (IRR) Act promoted riparian rights system vested most of the rights to water resources in commercial farmers only. NWA brought about the reform on the water rights Minister is the custodian of the Nation water resources Regional Water Utilities, CMAs and National Water Resource Agency supported. The Minister will specify date by which Water User Associations and Irrigation Boards (Irrigation Boards) will cease to exist IRR cabinet approval in 2013. Cabinet Lekgotla February 2015 Resolutions (Presidential Review Committee) In February 2015, Cabinet Lekgotla endorsed recommendations on the strengthening of SOE. The recommendations are focused on : RATIONALISATION creating an INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK that will support the advancement of the NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN OUTCOMES

Approved Policy Position December 2013 CMA in consultation with Minister, will determine the water institutional structures required to manage water within their jurisdiction The Minister will specify date by which Water User Associations and Irrigation Boards will cease to exist the appropriate functions related to a state-owned schemes being delegated to a CMA or Regional Water Utility These necessitate a due diligence process to be conducted

The intentions of policy position To enforce the DWS role as the regulator Development of Local Water Resource Management Institutions to be accountable to CMAs To ensure that water is distrIrrigation Boarduted equitably To ensure that water resources are protected, used, conserved, managed and controlled. To delegate water resource management to regional or catchment level and to involve local communities, within the framework of the NWRS2. To promote employment, redress, poverty eradication, skills development, and employment creation.

Principles to reform Water User Associations and IB irrigation Boards Irrigation Boards Developmental & integrated water resource management: Shared water source / resource / course requires shared management of all users, with specific focus on redress in SA Focus is use / utilization / management of source / resource / course, NOT only infrastructure ownership and management Transformation agenda – high priority in whatever restructuring process Representation in management structures Equitable, just and fair allocation of water resources to emerging farmers (must be inclusive to women, youth and disability) Adequate support and training for poor resource farmers Provision of adequate Infrastructure Review of resource poor farmers policy Efficient local water resource management Local water resource management functions will still be required Address administrative challenges Voluntary membership Poor participation (from other users (inclusive participation) Clearly defined roles and responsibilities Clearly define and separate functions between catchment management functions, regional water utilities, Infrastructure Agency and Local Water Resource Institution Division between regulatory and operational functions Responsibility for Infrastructure (National, Regional &Local) DWS to provide proper oversight and strategic leadership

Key issues to consider moving forward Infrastructure investment – incentives to leverage investment (explore partnerships) Share Lessons learned and expertise from the institutions that are operating well Local water resources management institutions are required at the local level Need to define structure and functions of the local water resource management institution Each institution should be assessed based on case by case basis. Functionality, financial, infrastructure, and etc. issues Use specifically developed indicators or criteria to determine whether to disestablish/ restructure or realign Ensure business continuity

Intersectoral Interventions- Department of Water and Sanitation, Agriculture & Rural Development Strengthen inter-sectoral planning between Land, Water & Agricultural sector to effectively address transformation objectives Develop pro-active design of a land-water strategy that would accelerate agrarian reform. Develop an Integrated funding model for Historically Disadvantaged Individuals Support effective water use i.e. ‘doing the right thing’ to conserve water i.e. making use of the right kind of irrigation and agricultural practices to use as little water as possible. Support water efficiency i.e., ‘doing things the right way’- specific kind of irrigation or agricultural technique, applying the technique correctly

Roadmap and Timelines Parallel activities Identify and finalise list of schemes to be transferred. Classification of schemes according to National, Regional and Local. DWS & CMAs to demarcate the scope, functional area, and membership for all Institutions Strengthen Capacity of CMAs to oversee water management institutions Minister approval for Roadmap ......December 2016 Conduct Case by Case due diligence............April 2017 to March 2018 Review legislation..........July 2017 Realigning the Local institutions...........April 2017 to March 2018 1 2 3 4

SECTION C Departmental support programme to achieve transformation objectives

Water allocation Reform

WATER ALLOCATION REFORM (WAR) WHY DO WE NEED A WATER ALLOCATION REFORM PROGRAMME? To promote proactive action for redress To achieve sustainable and equitable development To support poverty eradication & economic development To help balance resource protection, equity and growth Allocation of water can have severe economic, political, social and ecological consequences Determine water must re-allocated– minimise the impacts on the economy Ensure that water is used productively and responsblyy Support development in an ecologically sustainable way WHAT ARE THE UNDERLYING CONSIDERATIONS?

Approaches to achieve equity in terms of water allocation reform strategy Water allocation reform strategic mechanisms to achieve the set targets: Set-Asides General authorizations ( very limiting ) Strategic alignment with other Government initiatives Compulsory Licensing Partnerships Development support Water-based business enterprises

Summary of numbers of historically disadvantaged individuals supported through the Resource Poor Farmers support programme Province No of Projects No of Farmers supported RPF support programme Budget spent NC 4 67 Water use charges, Bulk water infrastructure R514 611 NW 1 21 water use charges R798 000 FS 5 29 Water use charge Bulk water distribution R571 306 WC 155 R292 984 EC 353 R1 769 133 MP 14 605 Water use charges, Bulk water distribution infrastructure R1 917 778 KZN 3 195 R2 862 722 LP 8 30 Bulk water distribution infrastructure R2 381 468 Total 45 1455 R11 108 002

Summary of licences/water use issued to Historically disadvantaged individuals in the last 4 yrs Number Volume Year Number of Non-HDI Number of HDIs Total Volume non-HDIs Volume HDIs 2013/14 165 92 257 183.98Mm3/a 20.46 Mm3/a 204.46Mm3/a 2014/15 109 44 153 278.31Mm3/a 9.03 Mm3/a 287.34Mm3/a 2015/16 476 205 681 191.89Mm3/a 12.30Mm3/a 204.19Mm3/a 2016/17 235 98 333 194.54Mm3/a 64.22Mm3/a 258.76Mm3/a 985 439 1424 848.72Mm3/a 106.01Mm3/a 954.75Mm3/a

Compulsory licensing & water user authorisations Compulsory licensing has since been completed in Mhlathuze, Jan Dissels and Tosca Catchments. Upon completion of the on-going validation and verification of Existing legal use and the remaining Catchments will also be considered for compulsory licensing.

THANK YOU