The entire Eastern Cape is set to be declared a disaster zone.
Once gazetted, this means the Eastern Cape will be declared a disaster province, a move which should result in national government pumping millions of rands in for drought relief programmes.
Provincial co-operative governance & traditional affairs (Cogta) spokesperson Mamkeli Ngam confirmed Buffalo City Metro (BCM) and the Alfred Nzo district municipality would also be in line for disaster status — although BCM mayor Xola Pakati said on Tuesday he was unaware of this.
“We have not applied for such and I have just confirmed that with the city manager (Andile Sihlahla), hence I cannot comment on something I am not aware of,” Pakati said.
The drought has resulted in death and destruction, with farmers and villagers hardest hit. Rural towns like Makhanda, Butterworth, Adelaide, Peddie and Komani have resorted to drawing water from stagnant streams, with the result that scores of people have stomach illnesses and skin rashes.
Sarah Baartman and Amathole district municipalities were declared disaster areas earlier this year.
Ngam confirmed the remaining four — Alfred Nzo, OR Tambo, Chris Hani, and Joe Gqabi — along with the two metros, BCM and Nelson Mandela Bay — had joined the queue.
This week Amathole district municipality (ADM) spokesperson Nonceba Madikizela-Vuso warned the proverbial “Day Zero”, when all water runs out, was imminent in Butterworth, the seat of Mnquma municipality, which is in ADM's jurisdiction. “ Gcuwa dam has run dry, with only one week's water supply remaining.
“ADM has been drilling boreholes below the dam without success. That has now been suspended and focus is now on drilling and equipping 30 low-yield boreholes with hand-pumps throughout Butterworth.
“In addition to the groundwater intervention, ADM will cart water from Teko Fihla, where boreholes were specifically equipped for tanker filling, and the Kei Bridge. But ADM will not be able to meet the community needs, hence the drilling and equipping of the 30 boreholes,” Vuso said, adding that ADM required R944m “to mitigate the negative impact of the drought”.
OR Tambo district mayor Thokozile Sokanyile said on Tuesday that her council's decision to declare the district a disaster area would help them get the support they needed.
NMB spokesperson Mthubanzi Mniki and mayor Mongameli Bobani could not be reached.
Ngam said the decision to declare the entire province a disaster area would be made official at a provincial cabinet meeting next week. The resolution would be forwarded to the national government. The next step would be for the disaster declaration to be gazetted.
In Komani on Tuesday DA MPL Retief Odendaal tabled a notice of motion asking the provincial government to speed up the process of declaring the Eastern Cape a drought disaster province.
“This period has been characterised as a once-in-a-hundred-years drought and has placed many farmers in financial ruin, and ultimately this can have a substantial impact on the provincial GDP.
“The effect of four consecutive years of below-average rainfall has placed a huge strain on farmers and they have to spend money to simply keep animals in a productive state.
“The extended drought has also led to significant job losses in the agriculture sector and, as a result, our local economies, particularly rural towns, are feeling the effects.
“Emerging farmers have been crippled by the severity of the drought and some have been forced to sell their livestock,” Odendaal said.
Odendaal said declaring a disaster would “empower the provincial government to protect key front-line service delivery points, reprioritise funding and allow financial assistance to be allocated”.
He asked that savings of R50m in the rural development & agrarian reform department budget be identified and redirected as drought aid to both emerging and commercial farmers.
AgriSA Eastern Cape chairperson Doug Stern said he had met premier Oscar Mabuyane and officials from other departments on Tuesday to discuss declaring the province a disaster, a move he has been lobbying for months.
“It’s long overdue, especially when you’ve had two district municipalities declared disaster areas. Provincial government is entitled to declare the entire province a disaster area,” Stern said.
Stern said Mabuyane had agreed to work closely with farmers after the declaration has been gazetted.
African Farmers Association of SA Eastern Cape coordinator Mhlobo Mbane welcomed the plans and said the MEC for rural development & agrarian reform, Nomakhosazana Meth, told them the disaster status would be gazetted “soon”.
“Climate change is upon us. We need to sit down and plan to mitigate droughts.” — Additional reporting by Sikho Ntshobane.
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