As of: 02/09/2023 9:14 p.m
There have been controlled power outages in South Africa for years because the state energy supplier is overloaded. But recently the situation worsened. President Ramaphosa has now declared a state of emergency and wants to appoint an energy minister.
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared a national emergency because of the ongoing energy crisis. The roots of the crisis stretched back years, Ramaphosa said in his annual State of the Union Address to Parliament. He announced that he would appoint an energy minister to solve the problems as soon as possible.
The state of emergency allows the government to free up additional financial resources to address the energy crisis. Ramaphosa said an independent body would review how the funds are being allocated to prevent misappropriation.
Up to ten hours without electricity
There have been large-scale, controlled power outages in South Africa for a good 15 years, but the crisis has intensified in recent months. In some cases, households and shops had to do without electricity for up to ten hours a day.
The state-owned energy producer Eskom has been accused of corruption and mismanagement. The power plants and infrastructure are outdated, and the utility has a debt of a good 21 billion euros. Eskom is responsible for 95 percent of power generation in South Africa.