For some families in South Africa, access to clean, safe drinking water is far from a given.
In six local municipalities in South Africa's North West and Limpopo provinces, people face severe water shortages, as current demand outstrips supply by more than 40 percent.
To help address the problem, the New Development Bank (NDB), which acts as the financial arm created by the BRICS nations to fund infrastructure and sustainable development projects, has approved $205 million to extend pipeline networks, enhance the capacity of existing pipelines, and expand water treatment facilities to provide sustainable access to drinking water for two million people in the region.