The Department of Water Affairs has spent at least half-a-billion rand on stipends to students it was supposed to train as plumbers, but it seems the money has just gone down the drain.
The War on Leaks programme – launched by then president Jacob Zuma in 2015 – was set to create jobs by training young people to fix ailing water infrastructure, which would save R7-billion believed to be lost annually through water leaks.
But the programme, which aimed to train 15,000 students but has taken on only 10,000, is grinding to a halt as the technical colleges are owed millions and have barred students from entry, or are shutting down completely.
This means that after three years students can’t get training in order to pass their September qualifying exams.
No comment was forthcoming from the Department of Water Affairs, Department of Higher Education or Rand Water, while the Energy and Water Sector Education and Training Authority phone lines were not working because it was moving offices.
Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package. 
