Progress with Water Allocation Reform in South Africa - Water and Agriculture: Sustainability, Markets and Policies - page 367

systems. This has required the inclusion of socioeconomic data into the national
monitoring system. This form of monitoring is expensive, and the NWRS already
indicates the need for considerable investment in water resources monitoring systems.
A number of monitoring frameworks are under development. However, many water
resources managers who have little appreciation and understanding of social indicators in
water resources management have resisted the use and inclusion of socioeconomic
indicators and have delayed the implementation of these frameworks.
Assistance to emerging users
One of the primary goals of this programme is to ensure that the rural poor realise
tangible benefits from using water. This is possible only if emerging users have the
means, both financial and technical, to develop infrastructure to use the water
productively. In this respect, Section 61 of the National Water Act makes provision for
financial support in specific circumstances. Accordingly, a “Policy for Financial Support
to Resource Poor Farmers” has been developed and is currently being implemented. This
policy provides for support under six conditions — ranging from support to individual
small water use to large communal irrigation schemes. In addition, the Raw Water Use
Pricing Strategy indicates that water user charges for emerging farmers could be
subsidised (decreasingly) over a period of five years, or waived under particular
circumstances.
Assistance to emerging farmers also includes the alignment of support from other
government departments, especially the Departments of Land Affairs and Agriculture.
5. Progress: Phase I — Vision and approaches
A draft Position Paper for Water Allocation Reform in South Africa, under
development since October 2003, formed the basis and focal point for this phase of the
programme. Its primary purpose was to provide an aligned and collective vision for the
programme that all could identify with and relate to as a point of reference.
The first challenge to the programme was to converge the diversity of opinions that
people, within and outside the department, had on the way water allocations and re-
allocations should be dealt with. Thus, very early in the programme, and preceding the
development of approaches and methods to promote race and gender equity in water
allocation, the basis and mandate was derived from the Constitution, National Water
Policy, National Water Act and other related legislation. The outcome of this was the
draft “Position Paper for Water Allocation Reform in South Africa.”
The position paper outlined the high-level “rules of the game” for allocating water to
promote race and gender reform, while at the same time supporting government's
programmes of poverty eradication, job creation, economic development and nation
building. This included addressing the expectations of the historically disadvantaged
majority South Africans and dealing with the fears and uncertainty of a historically
advantaged minority, primarily by minimising the impacts on existing lawful users and
the supporting the stability of the rural economy.
Early drafts of the position paper were presented to an expert panel comprised of a
range of experts representing different disciplines and constituencies including the rural
poor, water poverty, water law, politics, hydro-politics, as well as experts in strategic