Institutionalizing data-driven policymaking to improve access to water, air, and energy in Cape Town

South Africa’s constitution delegates many service delivery responsibilities to local governments. Metropolitan municipalities like the City of Cape Town are responsible for managing essential public services, including electricity, water, sanitation, housing, roads, and waste management. These services generate most of their own revenues.

In terms of basic service access, 85.4% of households had piped water inside their dwellings in 2022, 96.7% had access to electricity for lighting and 93.4% used flush toilets connected to sewerage systems (Source: Stats SA, 2022). However, the city faces growing threats to the quality and sustainability of its public services. The 2018 “Day Zero” crisis (when Cape Town came close to running out of water) highlighted the urgency of addressing climate-related vulnerabilities. Frequent power cuts due to national electricity shortages further strain public infrastructure. These challenges are compounded by declining revenues as wealthier households shift to private water and energy solutions (such as boreholes and solar panels), leaving behind lower-income users who are less able to pay service fees.

The City of Cape Town is now facing a pressing need to redesign how services are delivered to ensure both long-term sustainability and equitable access.

In response to this challenge and with growing demand from within city departments for more data and evidence, the City of Cape Town and J-PAL Africa launched the Water, Air, and Energy (WAE) Lab in March 2024. The WAE Lab aims to embed a culture of data and evidence use in city policymaking and strengthen the city’s ability to test and scale innovative solutions for service delivery.

This initiative builds on over a decade of collaboration between the City and J-PAL Africa. The WAE Lab’s core goals are to strengthen data systems and integrate them into decision-making processes, to pilot cost-effective and inclusive solutions to Cape Town’s water, energy, and air quality challenges. It will also build internal capacity to use data and evidence through training and technical assistance.

FID’s funding will support:

• Launching the Lab and setting up its core infrastructure
• Hiring and training technical staff (data engineers, research managers, and policy leads)
• Supporting the design and the piloting of new service delivery models
• Developing and testing systems for data use and internal learning
• Monitoring gender equality in participation and program impact.

Hosted by the City’s Policy and Strategy Department, the Lab is supported by J-PAL Africa and the University of Cape Town. Funding is also provided by Community Jameel and other partners.

By institutionalizing a dedicated space for experimentation and learning, the WAE Lab aims to transform how the City of Cape Town addresses climate, energy, and water challenges over the long term.

By the end of the current funding phase, the project aims to achieve the following:

• Operational Lab embedded in city systems, with trained staff and infrastructure in place
• At least two pilot interventions designed and implemented with support from the WAE Lab
• Improved data systems and procedures for policy design and evaluation
• Regular training programs delivered to city staff across departments
• Gender-sensitive data collection and monitoring mechanisms in place
• Political and administrative commitment to evidence-based policymaking
• A scalable model that can inform similar policy labs in other municipalities across South Africa and the continent

Ultimately, the WAE Lab will serve as a blueprint for institutionalizing evidence use at city level, enabling Cape Town to better serve its residents and remain resilient facing future crisis.