South Africa is a land of contradictions and extremes. Nowhere is this clearer than in the distribution of basic services. In a country with nuclear power, cellular telephones and vast inter-catchment water transfer schemes, more than 12 million people do not have access to an adequate supply of potable water; nearly 21 million lack basic sanitation. Public action is needed to remedy this unacceptable situation, but it must be action based on a clear policy which is premised on the rights of all people to determine their own future. The goal of Government is thus to ensure that all South Africans have access to essential basic water supply and sanitation services at a cost which is affordable both to the household and to the country as a whole