Christine spends almost half her salary on water and electricity

The delivery of clean running water and electricity to households throughout South Africa has become the hallmark of President Thabo Mbeki’s government. The risks of drawing water from polluted rivers were graphically illustrated in 2000 when hundreds of people died from cholera in the KwaZulu/Natal province.

Christine Mahlalela now has clean, running water, on tap, inside the house – a dream come true. As a child she would have to go out into the street and fill buckets from the standpipe which served the entire neighbourhood for cooking, cleaning and washing needs. Now she just turns on the tap in her kitchen. She still has to heat the water, but says that it is a major advance.

However, the electricity supply isn’t reliable. “It comes and goes. In the past we had coal-burning stoves which were better. You could cook on them and they would heat the whole house.”

The erratic electricity supply stems from thousands of illegal connections from the main supply boxes in the centre of the township. Not all residents want to pay their bills. Alexandra has 60% unemployment so even water and electricity are luxuries for many people.

Almost half Christine’s monthly salary goes on water, electricity and refuse removal bills.

The tap water is safe, but some don't like the taste

Curitiba, Brazil

About 99% of Curitiba’s 360,000 homes have running water, compared with about 88% in Rio de Janeiro. But only 60% have sanitation, in comparison to a national average of about 76%. Water is supplied by the state company Sanepar.

Tatyane and her husband pay $7.30 each month for their water supply, but choose to drink bottled water because of the taste.

“If I need to drink tap water I’ll do it because I feel safe. I use it for everything else - brushing my teeth, taking a shower, washing the dishes. In other parts of Brazil, especially in the north, we hear that you can get sick from the water. I’m glad we don’t have that here,” she said.

The couple have an electric shower which provides hot water, but the bathroom and kitchen have only cold taps.

During droughts, water provision in the suburbs is suspended on a rotational basis: “When it’s our turn to save water, I go to my relatives’ house to take a shower and wash the clothes,” she said.