On World Water Day (22 March 2025), WWF South Africa is urging policy makers not to lose sight of the importance of looking after our strategic water source areas (SWSAs) where most of our water comes from.

While many city-dwellers have been frustrated by intermittent water supply due to infrastructural issues, they may not be aware of the significance of these areas.

The SWSAs that supply our rivers with freshwater are located in mountainous areas, such as the Drakensberg and Boland mountains, which receive high rainfall that feeds our dams and rivers. The Gauteng metropolitan area, with the largest population and economy in southern Africa, gets 67% of its water from SWSAs.

These areas are considered strategic because they generate a disproportionate amount of water relative to their size, and are therefore essential to sustain people, nature and the economy.

South Africa’s water challenges, therefore, go beyond just failing infrastructure. The reality is, we are a water-scarce country, receiving only about half of the global average rainfall. On top of that, our water isn’t evenly spread across the country; it’s concentrated mainly in our SWSAs.

Some of the threats to these areas include invasive alien vegetation, which suck up water, and poor land management practices and mining, which can lead to less water in our rivers and poor water quality. This is worsened by wasteful and inequitable use of water and under-capacitated governance resulting in ineffective water management.

Senior technical freshwater specialist with WWF, Silindile Mtshali, explains: “There is an increasing need to protect these water source areas, or the whole water system could potentially fall apart, irrespective of how much we invest in built infrastructure.

“Safeguarding these areas isn’t only about protecting nature, it’s about securing water for millions of people, ensuring our economy stays afloat, and making sure no community is left behind. Healthy, functioning ecosystems keep the water flowing, support local communities, and help people build resilience against climate change.”

WWF has long identified the importance of looking after our strategic water source areas for water security. It promotes the protection of functional ecosystems as one of the best ways of safeguarding the flow into our rivers for the benefit of all.

Recent areas of work include the clearing of invasive alien plants, rangeland management, rehabilitation projects and spring protection. This is being done alongside improved, inclusive governance initiatives through multi-stakeholder partnerships, such as the uMhlathuze Water Stewardship Partnership, the Boland Groot Winterhoek SWSA Collective, Northern Drakensberg Collaborative and Table Mountain Water Source Partnership. The beauty of this approach is that it not only protects the biodiversity of our SWSAs but it also supports livelihoods.

Strategic water source areas by numbers

• South Africa has 22 surface water SWSAs that are strategically important at the national level for water and economic security for South Africa.

• Research shows that only 10% of our land in the SWSAs supplies some 50% of the water that flows into our rivers and dams.

• Around 50% of South Africa’s population depends on these natural areas for its water supply.

• Less than 20% of the land in our SWSAs is formally protected.

Where our cities get their water from

• The Gauteng metropolitan area, which has the largest population and economy in southern Africa, relies heavily on large water supply schemes. Of significance are the Maloti SWSA in Lesotho, which contributes about 34%, the Northern Drakensberg SWSA which provides 21% and the Upper Vaal SWSA with 12% of Gauteng’s water supply.

• The City of Cape Town receives 98% of its water supply from its immediate SWSAs, mainly in the Boland and Groot Winterhoek SWSA.

• Durban and Pietermaritzburg receive 98% of their water from the Southern Drakensberg SWSA.