As the country marks Heritage Month, the community living near Lake Fundudzi — South Africa's only natural and sacred lake — said it felt sidelined by the government's failure to preserve and develop the site for local benefit.
Lake Fundudzi, situated in the catchment area that includes Tshitangani, Tsharotha, Tshiheni, Thononda, Tshiavha and Phungoni villages, was declared a National Heritage Site by the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) in 2014. The declaration raised hopes that the rural community would see meaningful development, but more than a decade later, those dreams remain unfulfilled.
Local traditional leader Vhamusanda Lufuno Netshiavha warned that the sacred lake, which holds deep cultural and spiritual value, might soon dry up without urgent intervention. "Vhatavhatsindi have been the custodians of the lake, which is sacred for our rituals. It is our prerogative to ensure by any means necessary that it is protected and preserved. The environment has to be protected against destruction but challenges abound, and we need government intervention, otherwise future generations will not have any legacy left for them," he said.
Netshiavha listed deforestation, soil erosion, blocked river streams, forest fires caused by traditional bee harvesters, and illegal fishing by undocumented foreign nationals as threats to the lake's survival.
"This has become a source of great concern to us. Lake Fundudzi falls under SAHRA protection, just like Robben Island and Mapungubwe, and it deserves to be treated as such. We have escalated our plight to all offices, including the presidency, Limpopo premier, and the departments of Environmental Affairs and Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries — with no luck. What have we done to be treated as children of a lesser God? We do have proposals to ensure that our heritage site is preserved like any other in the country. We are calling on government to act with speed and do the right thing, otherwise the gods will turn against the whole country," he said.