-
Journalist, Richard Quest recently spent a week in Cape Town.
-
His stay coincided with bouts of stage 2 and 3 loadshedding.
-
Quest says South Africans have had to normalise power-cuts in order to survive.
Foreign visitors to South Africa are given a quick reality-check about what life is like in Mzansi, almost as soon as they step off the airplane.
British journalist, Richard Quest was in town recently, sharing his experience with Bruce Whitfield about our energy crisis and the economic impact it’s having on every aspect of life in the country.
The term ‘loadshedding’, a euphemism coined by Eskom themselves, is enough of an irritation for Quest, who believes more should be done to call out the power utility’s inneficiancies.
Quest says South Africans have been forced to normalise power-cuts in order to survive during a economically depressed time in the global economy.
I get infuriated with wanting to call it loadshedding…it’s a sanitised version of power-cuts.
Richard Quest, British journalist and host of ‘Quest Means Business’ on CNN
I do now understand why there aren’t more people saying ‘hang on, this doesn’t happen elsewhere’.
Richard Quest, British journalist and host of ‘Quest Means Business’ on CNN
The South African Treasury estimates that loadshedding costs the economy at least R900m a day
It’s an astonishing amount of money for a country that can’t afford any of the social welfares it would like to put in place.
Richard Quest, British journalist and host of ‘Quest Means Business’ on CNN
Quest says it’s therefore impossible for South Africa to achieve economic growth, amidst the ongoing energy crisis.
But one thing that impresses the veteran journalist is how South Africans have managed to adapt to their circumstances and still manages to create opportunities for themselves.
Everybody, in their own way, according to their own economic abilities, works around it.
Richard Quest, British journalist and host of ‘Quest Means Business’ on CNN
Planning is essential, but it’s also normalising the situation.
Richard Quest, British journalist and host of ‘Quest Means Business’ on CNN
Listen to the audio for more.
