Promoting multiple use water services to increase access to water of rural and peri-urban communities in South Africa

August 2014 - the Water Research Commission of the Republic of South Africa has received a €1.3 million grant to improve water delivery services for rural and peri-urban communities. The initiative will promote investments in multiple-use water services (MUS) an approach designed to overcome water challenges faced by many South African households. MUS is a low-cost water service approach proposing systems that take into account people’s multiple water needs as a starting point of planning, which leads to designs that can provide water services for a variety of uses all at once. Over 20,000 people are expected to get improved access to water for domestic and agriculture purposes, among others.