Gauteng needs more water, but must wait till 2029. This is what went wrong

Gauteng faces five years of water disruptions, and water supply will periodically fall lower than demand until the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) Phase 2 comes on stream.

The mega project to build the 950 million cubic metre Polihali Dam and 38km tunnel in Lesotho would have secured sufficient water to meet Gauteng's demand by 2019. However, the project is nine years behind schedule due to delays by government authorities and political interference.

As a result, Gauteng will continue to experience periodic water outages – such as those in Johannesburg last month - for the next five years.