THE decision by government to combine the efforts of four departments — minerals and energy; water affairs and forestry; public enterprises and trade and industry — in an effort to secure the supply of electricity is to be welcomed.
Government communications head Themba Maseko told Parliament yesterday that the four departments would coloborate to produce a “comprehensive electricity master plan” to halt the rolling blackouts that have plagued the country over the last two years.
Maseko candidly admitted that the plan was “long overdue”, somewhat of an understatement given the hardship endured by many as their power was cut off in the face of supply constraints.
“A lot of what’s happening in our economy was indeed planned and anticipated, but the pace of the growth has actually exceeded our capacity to meet the power and energy demands of the country,” he said.
What must be avoided now, is another one of those drawn-out government planning processes which takes months to put together, is vague and does not have the approval of treasury.
These departments must get their work done with urgency, especially given the lead-time involved in the development of sophisticated infrastructure.
The provision of electricity to every South African house is vital if this country is to lift the standard of living of its people.
And then there’s the need to supply businesses with the power they need to grow and expand, again because this is crucial to creating jobs and improving the lives of ordinary people.
Government is to be commended for taking action, but there is one nagging question.
If they are confident they can deal with the electricity supply issue, why did Maseko feel compelled to assure the world that the 2010 stadiums will all have generators?

Related posts:

1. Harnessing electricity from your … clothes??
2. Mugabe house “uses electricity of entire SA suburb”
3. Electricity price hike: Eskom keeps reason secret
4. Dear Eskom: Don’t blame us for your failings
5. Time to kill the lumbering Eskom beast