Dear Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation,

Re: Impact of budget cuts

The Budget Justice Coalition (BJC) is a civil society coalition. The purpose of the BJC is to collaboratively build people’s understanding of and participation in South Africa’s planning and budgeting processes – placing power in the hands of the people to ensure that the state advances social, economic, and environmental justice, to meet people’s needs and wellbeing in accordance with the Constitution.

The organisations who make up the BJC are: Alternative Information and Development Centre (AIDC), the Children’s Institute at UCT (CI), Corruption Watch (CW), Equal Education (EE), Equal Education Law Centre (EELC), HEALA, the Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ), Oxfam SA, Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PMEJD), the Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM), the Rural Health Advocacy Project (RHAP), SECTION27, Ilifa Labantwana, Treatment Action Campaign, Centre for Child Law (CCL), Youth Capital, 350.org, Open Secrets, Social Policy Institute, Public Affairs Research Institute, Amandla.mobi, Black Sash as well as friends of the coalition.

We request clarity on the following:

Have the budget cuts to the Department of Water and Sanitation, to municipal allocations and to conditional grants affected any programmes within the department, water boards and municipalities?
If so, what are the specific details related to the impact of the budget cuts on these programmes?

Kirsten Pearson
Steering Committee member, Budget Justice Coalition