As South Africa continues to feel the effects of load shedding caused by the country’s state-owned electricity supplier, Eskom, the government has declared a State of Disaster in order to provide practical measures to assist those businesses affected.
Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, on Monday, gazetted the disaster management regulations on electricity constraints. This follows a special Cabinet meeting held on 27 February 2023 and an announcement made by President Cyril Ramaphosa on 9 February.
The aim of the declaration is to provide support to businesses in the food production, storage and retail supply chain including the rollout of generators, solar panels and uninterrupted power supply. However, the State of Disaster has been declared to bail out a failing state-owned enterprise which has caused much disruption to the lives of the people.
The disaster regulations are intended to provide support to those businesses that have been devastated by the effects of load shedding, however, it is clear that the government has declared the State of Disaster in order to assist Eskom in its failing operations, rather than to provide practical measures to those businesses in need.
It is clear that the government is trying to take measures to assist Eskom, however, it is uncertain whether this State of Disaster will be effective in providing aid to those businesses affected by the load shedding.
Tags: CoGTA Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Eskom