How Widespread Corruption Brought About the Energy Crisis in South Africa
Image courtesy of Juanita Swart via Unsplash
South Africa is undergoing its largest energy crisis in over three decades, brought about by a combination of corruption and aging infrastructure. The most developed economy in Africa is now economically and politically threatened as the nation becomes increasingly unstable. In 2022 alone, the nation has undergone more than twice the amount of blackouts than in all previous years, and a national state of disaster was declared. The current government’s main task is to restore energy security. Old coal-operated power plants are in the midst of continuing blackouts. With rolling blackouts, there is expected to be a massive economic fallout in a country that is already struggling with unemployment which is currently at 33%, and GDP growth is expected to halve to 1.2% this year.
The energy crisis is largely due to the widespread mismanagement of Eskom, the state-owned energy provider which provides close to 90% of the country's electricity. It’s currently struggling due to a lack of investment in new power plants and infrastructure. The former head of Eskom, Andre de Ruyterm, recently gave an interview detailing how the agency had been losing over $50 million a month due to corruption of the government under the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party. In some areas, governments are paying independent households and businesses for extra energy during the crisis. Cape Town is reportedly attempting to become independent of Eskom as an energy provider.
Attempts to improve the energy infrastructure have also met roadblocks as well. ANC members have been reluctant to support the building of solar and other forms of clean energy. South Africa’s current president, Cyril Ramaphosa, supports the transition, yet those within the ANC oppose anything that threatens the coal industry, as many have past and present ties to it. Even energy ministers have blocked private companies from supplying power.
The energy crisis is among several instances of the much bigger scandal, commonly referred to as “State Capture,” one of the largest corruption scandals and investigations in years. For years, the former President of South Africa Jacob Zuma, and many of his associates, had been stealing state funds that could have been used to fund healthcare and improve the country’s energy infrastructure.
Funds have been stolen from the nation's revenue service, the agency that runs the country's railways, and the nation’s public broadcaster, the SABC. Among those included in the scandal are members of ANC leaders, including former and current government ministers. Efforts to solve the energy crisis have been relatively slow and ineffective. President Ramaphosa’s goal to rescue Eskom has been criticized for doing too much at the same time instead of focusing on key issues like maintenance. Some analysts propose that simple ways to solve the problem involve going into debt, creating a tiered tariff system that will force big companies to pay more, and allowing subsidies for lower-income individuals.
The energy crisis has also contributed to unrest, with protests and riots breaking out in some parts of the country in response to the outages. Led by political opponents and civic organizations, the protests have criticized the government for failing citizens as the outages have interrupted trade, education, and health care. To find stability, South Africa will need to address many issues and will start by attempting to solve the blackouts. But the government will need to move quickly and efficiently, as public sentiment remains low and many are worried about their future.
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