The Roles of Community Water Committees in Rural Water Resource Management

Description

Page: 175-177

Sejabaledi A. Rankoana (Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Limpopo, South Africa)

Involvement of local communities in water resource management has the potential to sustain resilient community water security. The present study describes the role of a community water committee in rural water resource management in a community that gets water from a single borehole. The study findings indicate that the community established a water committee whose mandate is manage the borehole and standpipes by instituting restrictions on water resource use and making repairs to the borehole and pipes’ breakage. These restrictions were discussed and adopted by the community and have fostered community participation in borehole management to ensure sustainable water supply.