EnergizeSA

Power Up South Africa

We strive to support people through the regular power outages in South Africa, and give rural communities electricity, power, and opportunity.

The Problem

Since 2007, South Africa has been going through various stages of what is known as loadshedding -- government scheduled power outages around the country due to power shortage. This has had a severely detrimental effect on South Africa's economy, businesses, and wellbeing. As South Africans find everything from streetlights to internet disabled, they lack things we take for granted.

According to the African Energy Chamber, since 2007, loadshedding has cost South Africa from R1.5 billion to R2.4 billion per day. After converting rand, South Africa’s currency, to US dollars this equates to $80,407,455 - $128,651,928 lost every single day. Every year since the 2007 beginning of the loadshedding practice, 1-1.3% of South Africa's annual GDP has been lost.

This means that without load shedding, South Africa’s GDP would have potentially been about 17% higher than it is now. This is a truly unimaginable loss that is still weighing on South Africa every day.

All over the country, loadshedding has caused countless amounts of food shortages. Unreliable power to refrigerators has caused food to rot away. Farmers have been unable to use their electricity reliant water pumps to grow their food during loadshedding hours and keep their livestock alive with ventilation.

These outages also affect hospitals, and if these hospitals do not or cannot acquire private generators, their patients who are on oxygen machines may be in life-threatening danger.

Learn More

There are many opportunities to get involved here at EnergizeSA! We encourage both individuals and organizations to reach out in our shared mission toward improving the power situation in South Africa.

EnergizeSA

Power Up South Africa!