During a National Cabinet Lekgotla held in July 2011, the Sisonke DM was identified as one of 21 priority Districts due to high service delivery backlogs. In August 2011, a Provincial Cabinet Lekgotla prioritised the Sisonke DM amongst four DMs for urgent intervention and Provincial Treasury and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) were given the task of sourcing funding and the appointment of technical expertise in the Sisonke DM. The Sisonke DM is almost entirely dependant on government grants to fund the provision of water and sanitation services to the poor. The cost of eradicating the water and sanitation backlog within the Sisonke DM is estimated at about R5, 370, 810 million. As a result of the DM failure to provide acceptable quality drinking water, the regional office of the DWA in KZN has offered their technical support to the district to help them improve their water safety plan. The wastewater quality in the DM is poor as well, requiring serious attention as it is below the legislative targets.