THE ROLE OF REGULATORY AND CO-OPERATIVE GOVERNANCE IN ENSURING THE QUALITY OF WATER SERVICES IN SOUTH AFRICA

Prior to 1994, a large number of South African population was without adequate water supply services and sanitation. Not surprisingly, since 1994 improvement in water services delivery has received significant government attention, and significant progress has been made in improved drinking-water and sanitation services delivery. Nevertheless, a study conducted by the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) found that majority of the municipalities in South Africa had inadequate systems in place to deliver acceptable water services. In strong contrast, Free State with limited resources had a large number of municipalities or Water Service Authorities (WSA) satisfying the conditions for provision of an acceptable service. This significant contrast was found to exist as a result of a provincial Department of Local Government and Housing (LGH) efforts that assists Local Municipalities(LM) via a monthly consultative audit of the quality of water services. This audit fulfils a co-operative governance for improving water services