Realising the Right to Water in South Africa: Challenges of Incorporating a Human Rights-based Approach
Authors Oluwabunmi Lucy Niyi-Gafar
ISSN: 2521-2613
Affiliations: Lecturer, Department of Jurisprudence and International Law, Faculty of Law, University of Ilorin, Nigeria
Source: Africa Nazarene University Law Journal, 2015, Issue 2, p. 72 – 89
Abstract
South Africa has been applauded for its laudable model of a human rights-based approach to potable water. The South African Constitution, and the operationalisation of the National Water Act (NWA) and the Water Services Act (WSA), have contributed to the creation of an enabling environment for access to potable water in South Africa. However, this approach may not have completely benefited poor black South Africans as revealed by the 2014 South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) report. A human rights-based approach to potable water in South Africa has, therefore, neglected the category of people for which it was originally adopted to serve.