Executive Director
Mr. Lindumusa Gwala joined Harry Gwala District Municipality as the Executive Director of Water Services from 01 November 2023. He has more than 22 years of experience that he has accumulated mainly in the Public Sector. He has worked for all three spheres of government in a built environment.
Mr Gwala matriculated at Kwamathanda High School in Umlazi. He studied towards a National Diploma in Civil Engineering at the then Mangosuthu Technikon which he completed in 2000. Mr Gwala worked for the KZN Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs from year 2021 as an Industrial Technician. His role in the department was to provide engineering support and services like surveying sites/farms, designing, planning, and constructing of all agricultural infrastructure such as storage dams, canals, pipelines, irrigation schemes, soil conservation structures, access roads, and drainage systems. He then studied towards a Bachelor Degree of Technology (B-Tech Degree) in Civil Engineering at the Durban University of Technology and graduated in 2006. Mr Gwala worked for the KZN Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs for over 4 years until he was promoted to the National Department of Public Works.
Mr Gwala joined the National Department of Public Works as a Control Industrial Technician in March 2006 in Durban KZN. His role in the department was primarily the supervision of Industrial Technicians within the Professional Services section at the Durban Regional Office of (NDPW). Mr Gwala was promoted to the KZN Provincial Department of Public Works (Head Office) in January 2008. He was stationed in Pietermaritzburg in the position of Deputy Manager in Programme Management. The calling to serve the citizens of South Africa drove Mr Gwala to join O. R Tambo District Municipality (ORTDM) in Umtata for 5 years as a Project Manager from September 2010. After leaving ORTDM, Mr Gwala joined Alfred Nzo District Municipality in Emaxesibeni as a Project Manager from September 2015 until May 2019. Before joining Harry Gwala District Municipality, Mr Gwala was employed by Winnie Madikizela Mandela Local Municipality in Bizana as Senior Manager of Engineering Services from June 2019 until September 2023.
Throughout his tenure in local government, Mr Gwala has been consistent in ensuring that grant funding meant for service delivery is spent within an applicable legislative framework. He finds pleasure in seeing communities benefitting from quality service delivery initiatives with positive socio-economic benefits. Mr Gwala has acquired vast experience in Project, Finance, and Human Resources Management. As the Executive Director of Water Services, would like to contribute towards efficient water services delivery, enhance revenue collection, human resource development, and capacitation, increase job creation, and local economic development.
Water Services Department Overview and Units
The Water Services Department is the department responsible for executing the Harry Gwala District Municipality Water Services Authority (WSA) function. The department is divided into 3 units working together to full fill the mandate of water services provision as per the South African Constitution, Water Services Act (108 of 1997), National Water Act (36 of 1998) as well as the Strategic Framework of the Water Services (2003). The three units are planning and designing, Water Governance & Customer Care as well as Operations and Maintenance unit.
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Planning and Design Unit
The Water Services Department through its Planning and design unit has the responsibility to perform all the planning for new projects and ensure that the department has all the planning systems in place. It also has the responsibility to develop the water and sanitation master planning documents of which the Water Services Development Plan (WSDP) is the key document.
The WSDP is the document that acts as an Integrated Development Plan (IDP) for Water and sanitation services. It gives that specific attention to the backlog, water and sanitation service levels water conservation and demand management and all other activities of the water services delivery within the municipality.
Currently the department has engaged the service provider that is working with the water service department staff in reviewing the existing master planning document. This exercise is as assistance to the municipality in prioritizing the areas that need urgent attention in terms of service delivery.
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Water Governance and Customer Care Unit
The Water Governance and Customer Care unit is the regulatory arm of the Water Services Department. It has the mandate of ensuring that the municipality is complying with National standards and legislation of the water service delivery. Among the duties that the unit has to perform is to ensure that the water and sanitation customers are well protected and satisfied. The most crucial of the unit is to ensure the development and implementation of the water services policies and by-laws.
Over and above this the unit performs awareness’s and educational campaigns where the communities get educated on their rights through the customer care charter, education on policies and by-laws, water conservation tips as well as health & hygiene tips. The unit also has the responsibility to ensure that the Municipality is complying with the National Standards of water quality and educate people of safety measures in case where the water quality is threatened.
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Operations and Maintenance Unit
Operations and Maintenance is the biggest unit in the Water Services Department in terms of staff turnover and the complexity of duties performed by the unit. It has its work divided into satellites and those satellites have been strategically placed according to the Local Municipality it serves. Each satellite has an Area Manager responsible for it, and they report to the Director Operations & Maintenance. Most of the water challenges and achievements of the water services function emanates through this unit of the water services department.
The department is currently faced with some challenges of the water provision however it is working hard to improve the situation day by day. The issues of old infrastructure that hinders and interrupt water supply, vandalism and the poor workmanship of the work from the inherited schemes are but the few to mention.
The focus of the unit is to improve the lives of the Harry Gwala District Municipality by supplying the water of the good quality and provide proper systems for sanitation services.