One Facebook friend of mine wrote on his page a few weeks ago about the need to study the effects of load-shedding on our mental health. This actually made me think.

I am raising a three-year-old toddler who lives off television and YouTube content. This age group is not just referred to as “the terrible twos” for nothing. Having to deal with a toddler’s tantrums is one of my worst fears.

It comes second to my fear of darkness. I am afraid of the dark, so loadshedding is my worst nightmare. Luckily, I have mastered the art of letting my daughter know what loadshedding is and how it affects our lives. I think she gets it, to an extent.

The other day the lights were about to go off, and as usual, I alerted her and began switching off all electric appliances in the house. Darkness hit, then she went: “Ahh mama, no lights. It is boring.” Yes, it is boring, or “boling” as she refers to it. But more than anything, loadshedding is an inconvenience.

I get anxious all the time, especially when she is around. However, my daughter and I are fortunate; unlike most South Africans, we have a gas stove. So, the lights may go off, but we are assured a warm meal every night. Unlike water, electricity has a substitute.

With SA being a water-scarce country, I think there are lessons for all of us from the challenges faced by the power utility, and for me, it is not using more than you need.

Water and electricity are basic human needs. And I am very aware I will come across as criticising the same government I work for, but much more work has to be done and speedily so. More so, collaborative work is needed.

In the water sector, minister Senzo Mchunu has been calling for private sector partnerships. This is as the demand for water and sanitation infrastructure development and refurbishment in SA is increasing due to population and economic growth. It is envisaged that by the year 2030, there will be a 17% deficit in availability of water.

As such, the department of water and sanitation has established a water partnership office with the assistance of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) to serve as a special purpose vehicle to facilitate partnerships and manage joint accounts for specific funding for projects implemented through collaboration.

The office also manages special programmes such as water conservation and demand management (particularly reducing non-revenue water), water reuse, wastewater treatment improvement and seawater desalination, among others. A first step in the right direction, although with much more work still lying ahead.

We say that money doesn’t grow on trees, neither does water or electricity. As we all try to find ways to live with load-shedding, we need to be mindful that we would not find ways to live without water, because there is just no way around it. Unlike electricity, water has no substitute. We need to use is wisely.

I admit that the digital devices my daughter has access to, as well as the electric appliances I have to switch off before load-shedding, are a privilege. Can you imagine a situation where there is water shedding, as a woman raising a girl child. This would be catastrophic. No amount of words would be sufficient to say she cannot wash her hands after using the bathroom or drink water because our taps have run dry. Let us all treat water with the utmost care.

Maseko is a communicator at the department of water and sanitation. She writes in her personal capacity.