WATCH | Scorched earth: no end in sight for drought-stricken QwaQwa

28 October 2019 - 15:22
By EMILE BOSCH

QwaQwa has been suffering from drought for five years.

Residents of the former Free State homeland have to walk kilometres to fill buckets with water from natural springs and boreholes, one of which was drilled by Gift of the Givers.

The government has deployed trucks to deliver water. However, these struggle to service everyone and residents often wait weeks for a truck to arrive. 

The Fika-Patso Dam, the area's main water source, is at less than 10% capacity.

A severe lack of infrastructure has resulted in some residents having water while others have none. Water protests have become common and tensions continue to rise between those with water and those without.