South Africa’s water crisis is not just downstream.
Let’s not forget where our water comes from; it comes from nature!
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.
