World Water Day 2025: Addressing Water Inequality in South Africa

To mark World Water Day 2025, Professor Philiswa Nomngongo, DSTI-NRF SARChI Chair in Nanotechnology for Water, highlights the need for a more inclusive approach to water access in South Africa.

She highlights that while water shortages in urban areas like Johannesburg and Cape Town often dominate the discourse, not much is said about South Africa’s rural communities that remain without consistent access to clean water.

“My question is when are we in South Africa going to talk about the supply of clean and safe water in an inclusive way, not in a way that only considers some areas,” says Prof. Nomngongo.

“We totally forget about people who do not have access to clean water in South Africa, some of whom still fetch water from the rivers. Rural communities are always the forgotten ones. It doesn’t matter which province you’re talking about, it’s the same throughout.”

Rural areas are often overlooked not just in basic structural services for water but also when it comes to research tailored for these communities, says Prof. Nomngongo. “As a result, there aren’t many funded research projects looking into water research projects focused on rural areas. My research also aims to shed light on the water issues that persist in South African rural areas. Lastly, we want also to be able to teach and inform rural communities about the dangers related to water issues.”

Her current research project in the Eastern Cape has identified a problem of extended water rationing in rural areas. These are communities where water is only available on specific days and times, despite the availability of water taps across the households. “We go to communities and get told the water is only available on Tuesdays early in the morning,” she reflects.

“This tells us that water supplied to such communities is no longer enough. The number of people in rural areas is increasing, yet the resources are either not there or not enough.”

A professor of Environmental Analytical Chemistry at the University of Johannesburg, Prof. Nomngongo has been the DSTI-NRF SARChI Chair in Nanotechnology for Water since 2020. Established in 2006 by the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) and the National Research Foundation (NRF), the South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) is designed to attract and retain excellence in research and innovation in South African public universities.

Prof. Nomngongo’s research focuses on the use of nanotechnology to improve water quality. “Monitoring water quality is very important. In order for us to come up with solutions, we need to know what the problem is. So, we’re using nanotechnology to identify the problems in different sources, whether it’s wastewater or river water,” she says.

There are many tangibles from her research. “We manage to identify problems in different areas. Our research tells us a lot of things. For example, it tells us that in the urban areas, our raw water systems are contaminated by pharmaceuticals and a lot of other pollutants that should not be in the water,” says Prof. Nomngongo.

“In some rural areas, the primary problem is microbial contamination, such as E. coli in borehole water. In such instances, our team can develop nanomaterials that trap E. coli and improve water quality.”

Her tenure as DSTI-NRF SARChI Chair has produced more 51 postgraduates between 2020 and 2025. Of these, 29 obtained their Master of Science and 22 doctorate degrees, largely specialising in environmental analytical chemistry with a focus on water research.

“Our work not only contributes to finding solutions but also helps train and retain students in this critical field until they complete their degrees,” says Prof. Nomngongo. “More than 50% of our graduates are black, South African females. All these graduates are equipped with skills in water monitoring, which is very important.”