- Water Stories reports on AWCC and Water Committee’s’ Demands
“The Daily Maverick published an op-ed written by the African Water Commons Collective and The Movements Collective, titled Free Basic Water is Not Free, and is Not Affordable. This article argues that while Cape Town promotes itself as a leader in water management, unaffordable water costs, deductions from electricity purchases to recover water debt, restrictive water …Water Stories reports on AWCC and Water Committee’s’ Demands Read More »
- Free basic water in Cape Town is not free and not affordableResidents facing water injustices demand that the City of Cape Town account for, and change, its anti-poor, racist and sexist free basic water policy practices. The dismissive response to Black people from poor communities who engage the City about their struggles with access to water is unacceptable, undemocratic and unjust. Read the full op-ed in …
Free basic water in Cape Town is not free and not affordable Read More »
- Open Letter Reply to the City of Cape Town
“Dear Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis and Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation Zahid Badroodien, We have taken the past 18 months to collect responses from the 14 Water Action Committees we work with as well as undergo careful research in order to substantially reply to your letter. We hope our concerns are not dismissed again and that urgent action is taken … - Water For Life Campaign Launch
Date: Saturday 30 May 20269AM – 5PMThe Castle of Good Hope, Cape TownTo join contact: africanwatercommonscollective@gmail.com - AWCC – International Solidarity
- AWCC Water Justice Political School – On Now
The African Water Commons Collective and Water Action Committees’ Water Justice Political School starts today! - AFRICA WATER JUSTICE NETWORK (AWJN) FEMINIST POLITICAL SCHOOL
Accra, Ghana:17–19 February 2026 The AWCC coconvened with the Africa Water Justice Network (AWJN) and Women Collective Kenya a Feminist Political School in Accra Ghana from 17-19 Feb 2026. The intensive school brought together water justice activists, and grassroots leaders from Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Senegal, Gambia, and Nigeria. Rooted in African feminist traditions, collective …AFRICA WATER JUSTICE NETWORK (AWJN) FEMINIST POLITICAL SCHOOL Read More »
- Nyanga community launches water action committee to tackle water issues
Scores of Nyanga residents converged at Nyanga Arts Development Centre in the area on Friday 14 November during the launch of Nyanga Water Action Committee (NWAC) in an effort to deal with the issues pertaining to water. The objective is to preserve and educate people about the importance of water in life.NWAC chair Dumisani Makhanya described the …Nyanga community launches water action committee to tackle water issues Read More »
- WCWJC – Workshop/Meeting/Capturing Water Film Screening
Join us Saturday for a meeting of the Western Cape Water Justice Coalition, workshop and screening of the documentary film ‘Capturing Water’. - PODILRIG 1.25 – WATER HAS NO GENDER, BUT IT HAS AN AGENDA
🎙️ PODILRIG – Newest podcast and addition to ILRIG’s grassroots popular education media. This platform serves social justice issues with a strong feminist focus, amplifying voices from the ground. In it’s first episode, they look at water struggles from Johannesburg and Cape Town to Palestine a feature the AWCC. They expose how neoliberal state policies …PODILRIG 1.25 – WATER HAS NO GENDER, BUT IT HAS AN AGENDA Read More »
- Cape Town’s water recycling project should not be privatisedComment on the proposed Faure New Water Scheme closes on 17 April A group of water justice researchers has warned against the City of Cape Town’s proposal to “externalise” the implementation and operation of the Faure New Water Scheme. Read the full article in GroundUp here.
- Stop the Faure Water Sell-Off: Cape Town’s Future Shouldn’t Be for Sale
An abridged version of this letter was published by GroundUp, 16 April 2025. A group of water justice researchers warn against the expensive disasters ahead if citizens agree to the City of Cape Town’s proposal to “externalise” the implementation and operation of the Faure New Water Scheme. The City of Cape Town (CoCT) wants to outsource …Stop the Faure Water Sell-Off: Cape Town’s Future Shouldn’t Be for Sale Read More »
- Watch Capturing Water on Al-Jazeera!
- No To Water Privatization!The City of Cape Town wants to outsource a very expensive very risky new water project to turn sewerage water into drinking water, called the Faure New Water Scheme. Under Section 78 of the Municipal Systems Act, they are obliged to get buy in via “consultation platforms.” Their main question to the public is: what …
- ‘The Water We Need’: Household Water Mapping as Ecofeminist Education and Research for the Water CommonsBy Anna James, Faeza Meyer and Ebrahiem Fourie. Basic services are a critical nexus point for the realisation of sustainable cities. In South Africa, the failure to realise adequate and equitable basic services cements apartheid and colonial power relations, reproducing violent inequalities and relations of unsustainability. Water inequality has a disproportionate impact on women, who …
- Water For Life – AWCC World Water Day Statement
Although the right to water is enshrined in our Constitution, many South Africans live every day without access to the water they need for basic survival—for drinking, washing, eating, health, religion, and more. The African Water Commons Collective (AWCC) has been working with communities across the Cape Flats and Witzenberg for over a decade to … - Screening & Panel Discussion: Capturing Water
Join us for a special screening of Capturing Water at Bertha House Bioscope in Mowbray, Cape Town, co-hosted by the Institute for African Alternatives (IFAA). This powerful documentary by Rehad Desai explores the struggles of activists fighting for water justice in Cape Town. Following the screening, a panel discussion will feature:Rehad Desai (Director,)Dr. Koni Benson … - EMPTY PROMISES: The struggle for equitable access to water in South Africa
PARI has released a new report exploring the promises and realities of the Human Right to Water and access to water for all in South Africa. Read the full report compiled by Tracy Ledger, Mahlatse Rampedi and Ntokozo Ndhlovu here. - Water for Need! Water for Life!
20 November 2024 The African Water Commons Collective rejects the unconstitutional actions of Johannesburg Water disconnecting so-called illegal water connections in Phumla Mqashi informal settlement in Lenasia South. This operation by Joburg Water was carried out without any notification. According to the Daily Maverick on 12 November 2024 residents said they were in the process … - Capturing Water Film Screening and Discussion
The first film screening of Capturing Water in discussion with the Nelson Mandela Bay Water Crisis Committee will be held at Rhodes University on Wednesday 6 November! More information at capturingwater.co.za. Read the NMB Water Crisis Committee’s latest report here. Please share widely and make links with your local water organisers in the fight to … - Capturing Water Film Screening and Discussion
The second film screenings of Capturing Water in discussion with the Nelson Mandela Bay Water Crisis Committee will be held in Johannesburg on Thursday 14 November! More information at capturingwater.co.za. Read the NMB Water Crisis Committee’s latest report here. Please share widely and make links with your local water organisers in the fight to protect … - Bridging Waters: Uniting Activists for Bottom-Up Solutions
Water Justice activists from Kenya and South Africa recently convened in Cape Town for the inaugural Bridging Waters event, a collaborative initiative organised by the Africa Water Justice Network in collaboration with the Blue Planet Project, the African Water Commons Collective and the Nairobi Water Justice Working Group. The gathering marked a significant departure from …Bridging Waters: Uniting Activists for Bottom-Up Solutions Read More »
- AWCC Launches New Water Mapping Toolkit
Making Connections Between our Households and the Water Commons Do you know how much water your household uses daily? Do you know who is responsible for the water your household gets? Do you have the water that you need? How does your water use affect other parts of your life such as health, work, education…?… … - Feminist organizing for water justice in Africa: Popular Education Toolkit
Urgent Action Fund – Africa has released a ‘Feminist organizing for water justice in Africa – Popular Education Toolkit’, with contributions from the AWCC and comrade organizations. “This is a toolkit with activities designed to facilitate a popular education process for and with activists who are fighting for water justice in Africa. With popular education …Feminist organizing for water justice in Africa: Popular Education Toolkit Read More »
- Western Cape’s ‘weapons of mass destruction’ entrench ‘water apartheid’
Mail and Guardian coverage of the AWCC No Holiday Without Water: End Water Apartheid in Cape Town and Gaza campaign launched last December and the impact of water restrictions on the working-class households. “The AWCC wrote a letter to the city outlining its demands for an end to the unfair distribution of water and high costs. During …Western Cape’s ‘weapons of mass destruction’ entrench ‘water apartheid’ Read More »
- Protest for Water Rights in Cape Town: A Demand for Equality
CapeTown.Today has coverage of the AWCC No Holiday Without Water: End Water Apartheid in Cape Town and Gaza campaign launched last December. ‘Protesters in Cape Town demand fair water distribution and an end to water inequality.The municipality’s implementation of water management devices and debt deductions from electricity transactions were key issues of contention during the …Protest for Water Rights in Cape Town: A Demand for Equality Read More »
- No Holiday Without Water: End Water Apartheid in Cape Town and Gaza
The AWCC has launched a campaign demanding an End to Water Apartheid in Cape Town and Gaza, delivering a series of demands to the mayor with an action planned outside the the last 2023 City of Cape Town Council Meeting on December 7th. Join us! - The Hydro-Colonial Water Cycle in South Africa
The African Water Commons Collective has released an illustration of the Hydro-Colonial Water Cycle that accurately maps South Africa’s water realities. There is nothing natural, normal, neutral or inevitable about water distribution and relationships to water in Cape Town and South Africa. - Womn and Water in Africa: An Overview of Water Justice Struggles
Urgent Action Fund – Africa has released a ‘Womn and Water in Africa: An Overview of Water Justice Struggles’, with contributions from the BPP and comrade organizations. As the authors note “ The work of UAF-Africa is aligned with feminist and alternative approaches to water control and management, which focus on the needs of the …Womn and Water in Africa: An Overview of Water Justice Struggles Read More »