Cape Town has just been through one of the worst droughts in the region’s history and yet, through the collective efforts of its citizens, the city is back in business – thanks largely to the city’s municipal leadership and its ability to mobilise its people towards sustained conservative usage.

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This despite predictions that South Africa’s tourism capital could have become the first major metropolis in the world to run completely dry. The city’s rally call now is that it’s still very much open for business and ready to welcome back visitors after what has predictably been a dry season for its attractions and accommodation venues.

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International expert in environmental and natural resources law and policy, based at the Stanford University Woods Institute for the Environment in California in the USA, Professor Barton Thompson has spent time in Cape Town lecturing on water policy and is acquainted with both the city and its water crisis. In an article written for Stanford Law School earlier this year, he says Cape Town was a victim of its own success: “Cape Town is ironically at greater risk because it has been excellent at conservation.”

He adds that Cape Town has been a model city in reducing its per capita water usage and has won awards for its green water policies. However, this has also enabled growth of around one million people moving to Cape Town over the past decade – without looking for new sources of water. He cites numerous cities in similar situations, in the USA, Australia, Brazil, Venezuela, India and China.