Govt risking lives of millions of flood-prone residents, says new report
Amnesty International South Africa has accused the government of putting the lives of more than five million people living in informal settlements at risk by failing to provide adequate housing, essential services, and disaster response.
In its latest report, Flooded and Forgotten: Informal Settlements and the Right to Housing in South Africa, the human rights organisation found that many residents living on flood-prone land are “routinely left to cope on their own, especially during severe weather conditions”.
The report, launched on Tuesday, focuses on informal settlements in Johannesburg, eThekwini, and Cape Town.
Amnesty International South Africa’s Researcher, Malavika Vartak, says the government has failed to uphold people’s fundamental rights.
“The fact that millions of people in South Africa today are living in informal settlements is a testament to the failure of successive governments to fulfil their human rights obligations.”
The report also highlights the 2022 KwaZulu-Natal floods and the February 2025 floods in eThekwini, where some families, who had been relocated after the first disaster, were forced to flee again when their temporary homes were also flooded.
It called on the government to strengthen disaster management, upgrade informal settlements, and provide safe, dignified housing.
“We are not stopping with this report; we are going to launch a massive campaign, and the goal is to bring about change and to ensure the state is held accountable,” said the organisation’s director, Shenilla Mohamed.
