A century of infrastructure service delivery

Abstract

The infrastructure investment in South Africa over the century since Union is staggering. This investment has arisen partly because of population increase (from 6 million in 1910 to an estimated 50 million in 2011); partly because of rural-to-urban migration; partly because of smaller family sizes (and hence more dwellings, water connections and so on); and partly because of concern for social equity, coupled with demand for each household to have its own facilities. This increase in infrastructure has led to an increased consumption per capita of engineering infrastructure services such as water (e.g. taps inside homes, whereas previously a shared standpipe in the street or, for the rural poor, a distant well or natural source such as a spring). Increased consumption has also been driven by higher levels of hygiene (more washing), flush sanitation and more water-using devices in the home, as well as higher industrial and commercial usage of water.