Challenges associated with water pumps not functioning at health facilities due to rolling blackouts cannot be resolved
in this financial year. This is according to the Health Minister Doctor Joe Phaahla who was speaking at a post-State of the Nation Address social cluster media briefing in Pretoria. The recently-declared electricity state of national disaster will, however, facilitate the exemption of water treatment plants and some hospitals from rolling blackouts.Phaahla says financial constraints will make it difficult to address infrastructure issues at some facilities.
“Both Eskom and municipalities, which are electricity distributors have indicated certain infrastructure which needs to be inserted in terms of cables to bypass where the supply of the health facility is strongly linked with the local supply of residential areas and business areas. They have given us a number of hospitals which we see as a priority where they say that additional cable is required and they are not able to fund.