Investigating the effectiveness of policies on household water and sanitation debt escalation at eThekwini Municipality.

Abstract

This qualitative case study examines the effectiveness of local policies in mitigating the growth of household water and sanitation debt in the eThekwini Municipality, South Africa. Based on semi-structured interviews with a highly vulnerable peri-urban resident. Semi-structured interviews will be employed in this study's qualitative research methodology to collect data from key stakeholders of the Water and Sanitation Directorate, as well as residents of eThekwini Municipality. 15 participants who are directly impacted by and/or involved in the implementation of water and sanitation policies were chosen using non-probability purposive sampling. To find important trends and root causes, the data were subjected to a thematic analysis. There is a low level of policy awareness, and access to indigent relief is limited, despite numerous visits to the Sizakala centre and community revelations that there is no work available. The implementation is biased towards punishment, focusing on debt recovery rather than repair, and blocks communication, creates dependency among councillors, and unclear distribution spreads misinformation. Mutual accountability is socio-culturally recognised, but conditional on the investment of municipal infrastructure, which underscores a trust schism. Complemented by the current literature, the results highlight institutional silos rather than noncompliance among the residents as the key sources of debt. According to the findings, the household water and sanitation debt in eThekwini municipality continues to grow despite current policies, due to ineffective implementation, income inequality, a lack of community engagement, and ambiguous policy criteria. Access to support is challenging for residents, underscoring the need for more sustainable, transparent, and inclusive policy approaches. It is recommended that equity-based changes be made to national frameworks to achieve sustainable governance. Weaknesses are the single-interview generalisability that is alleviated by future mixed-methods development. The work contributes to the current research on propoor utility management, where interventions should be holistic in terms of fiscal sustainability and the constitutional realisation of water rights.