The Municipal Infrastructure Support Agent (MISA) says Mpumalanga municipalities will need billions of rand to rehabilitate infrastructure that has been severely damaged by the recent floods.
MISA visited the municipalities in the province, which includes City of Mbombela, Nkomazi, and Bushbuckridge, to conduct inspections on the extent of the damage caused by the floods.
President @CyrilRamaphosa is in the province of Mpumalanga to assess the extent of the damage caused by the #floods and to ensure a coordinated response by government.
The President is starting the visit at Mjejana in Nkomazi Local Municipality. pic.twitter.com/gGWnM35vsw
— The Presidency 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) January 19, 2026
MISA conducted its assessment of the damage caused by the floods in the province. 10 out of the 17 municipalities in the province reported significant damage to critical infrastructure, such as roads amongst others.
MISA visited the municipalities to verify their business plans, which outline the extent of the damage and estimated costs. MISA Chief Executive Officer, Mapatane Kgomo, says they also provided technical assistance on appropriate intervention while doing the oversight.
“The damage is mostly on gravel roads and these are the roads that are used by community members to access schools, clinics and the likes, these roads have been eroded by the floods because the floods have been very heavy. So we have found that there is an issue with the type of the soil in the area, so we are encouraging municipalities to rebuild the roads by using different and better technology so we don’t have a recurrence to this kind of damage in the future,” says Kgomo.
Those who are affected by the floods in Bushbuckridge shared their views about the situation.
“The roads here in Mkhuhlu are bad, it has been like that for some time, but the recent floods made the roads worse. I hope they will be fixed this time around. We also have water challenges; even though the councilors are updating us on the water challenges, now it’s worse.”
“I didn’t even move from my home because the roads are worn out until now. I have a car, but I am unable to go anywhere or go to town.”
MISA says municipal infrastructure needs to be enhanced to withstand future climate-change-related events. Kgomo, however, says the government alone will not be able to meet the financial support needed.
MISA will continue to monitor and support municipalities’ infrastructure recovery and stabilisation efforts to ensure the restoration of basic services.
Their next stop will be in Limpopo Province.
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