Recently, during the Mpumalanga Investment and Mining Conference, Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa promised that load reduction in Mpumalanga would come to an end within the next 12 months.
It is a bold commitment, one that, if honoured, would be transformative for households, businesses, and the broader provincial economy. But if history is anything to go by, Mpumalanga has heard grand promises before, only to be met with delays, excuses, and continued hardship.
The end of load reduction is not merely an energy issue; it is a social and economic imperative. Every hour without electricity undermines business operations, cuts into working hours, disrupts essential services like healthcare and education, and compromises community safety. In towns across our province, small businesses have had to spend scarce resources on generators just to stay open. Clinics struggle to keep critical equipment running during extended outages. Learners are forced to study by candlelight. These are not abstract policy failures; they are daily realities for ordinary Mpumalanga residents.
Adding to the confusion is government’s deliberate use of different terminology to describe the same lived experience. While loadshedding refers to planned, rotational power cuts implemented nationally when demand exceeds supply. Load reduction, on the other hand, is a localised power cut imposed in specific areas, often in provinces like Mpumalanga, to protect overloaded infrastructure, usually due to illegal connections or network constraints.
The government has leaned on the term “load reduction” to downplay the severity of power cuts in some areas, especially in parts of Mpumalanga. For communities, the effect is the same: the lights go off. But government treats “load reduction” as a technical network protection issue, not an energy supply issue. This shifts the blame to communities (illegal connections) or local infrastructure, taking it off the national government’s scorecard.
This allows officials to claim that “load shedding has improved/ended” nationally, even though people in affected areas still sit in the dark daily because of “load reduction.”
It is a word game, one that does nothing to change the lived reality of families and businesses in Mpumalanga. Whether you call it load shedding or load reduction, the problem is the same: communities are left in the dark, often without clear communication or accountability.
This darkness has another dangerous consequence: rising crime. Communities across Mpumalanga report spikes in criminal activity during periods of load reduction, particularly at night. Criminals exploit the lack of lighting to move and operate without fear, targeting homes, businesses, and vulnerable individuals. Streets and neighbourhoods become more dangerous when power is cut, leaving residents not only in darkness but also in a heightened state of insecurity. The failure to provide reliable electricity therefore doesn’t just disrupt daily life, it actively creates conditions that embolden criminal elements and put communities at risk.
That is why promises of an end to load reduction must be backed by credible, transparent action. It is not enough to make pronouncements at investment conferences. Government must present detailed plans:
- Which power stations or grid infrastructure will be prioritised?
- What specific interventions will be undertaken to stabilise supply?
- How will budgets be allocated, and what timelines are realistic?
Without clear answers to these questions, such promises risk becoming political theatre, timed to create hope without delivering results.
Mpumalanga stands at a critical juncture. As the heartland of South Africa’s coal industry, our province is both a driver of national energy supply and one of the regions most affected by Eskom’s instability. The energy transition offers opportunities, cleaner power, new green jobs, and investment in modern infrastructure, but this can only succeed if local communities and workers are part of the solution, not left behind.
ActionSA believes that energy security and economic growth must go hand in hand. We therefore call on the provincial and national governments to publish a clear implementation roadmap, including regular progress reports accessible to the public. This roadmap must detail investment, maintenance plans, timelines, and accountability measures for failure to deliver. Civil society, business, and communities must be involved in monitoring this progress, not as spectators, but as active participants holding government to account.
The people of Mpumalanga deserve more than speeches and ribbon-cutting ceremonies. They deserve reliable electricity, functioning local economies, and the dignity that comes with dependable public services. ActionSA will not allow this promise to fade quietly into the background. We will track it, test it, and hold leaders accountable for every missed deadline and broken commitment.
Real leadership is not about making promises in well-lit conference halls. It’s about delivering power to the communities still sitting in the dark.
Bold Promises Won’t Light Up Mpumalanga
Recently, during the Mpumalanga Investment and Mining Conference, Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa promised that load reduction in Mpumalanga would come to an end within the next 12 months.
It is a bold commitment, one that, if honoured, would be transformative for households, businesses, and the broader provincial economy. But if history is anything to go by, Mpumalanga has heard grand promises before, only to be met with delays, excuses, and continued hardship.
The end of load reduction is not merely an energy issue; it is a social and economic imperative. Every hour without electricity undermines business operations, cuts into working hours, disrupts essential services like healthcare and education, and compromises community safety. In towns across our province, small businesses have had to spend scarce resources on generators just to stay open. Clinics struggle to keep critical equipment running during extended outages. Learners are forced to study by candlelight. These are not abstract policy failures; they are daily realities for ordinary Mpumalanga residents.
Adding to the confusion is government’s deliberate use of different terminology to describe the same lived experience. While loadshedding refers to planned, rotational power cuts implemented nationally when demand exceeds supply. Load reduction, on the other hand, is a localised power cut imposed in specific areas, often in provinces like Mpumalanga, to protect overloaded infrastructure, usually due to illegal connections or network constraints.
The government has leaned on the term “load reduction” to downplay the severity of power cuts in some areas, especially in parts of Mpumalanga. For communities, the effect is the same: the lights go off. But government treats “load reduction” as a technical network protection issue, not an energy supply issue. This shifts the blame to communities (illegal connections) or local infrastructure, taking it off the national government’s scorecard.
This allows officials to claim that “load shedding has improved/ended” nationally, even though people in affected areas still sit in the dark daily because of “load reduction.”
It is a word game, one that does nothing to change the lived reality of families and businesses in Mpumalanga. Whether you call it load shedding or load reduction, the problem is the same: communities are left in the dark, often without clear communication or accountability.
This darkness has another dangerous consequence: rising crime. Communities across Mpumalanga report spikes in criminal activity during periods of load reduction, particularly at night. Criminals exploit the lack of lighting to move and operate without fear, targeting homes, businesses, and vulnerable individuals. Streets and neighbourhoods become more dangerous when power is cut, leaving residents not only in darkness but also in a heightened state of insecurity. The failure to provide reliable electricity therefore doesn’t just disrupt daily life, it actively creates conditions that embolden criminal elements and put communities at risk.
That is why promises of an end to load reduction must be backed by credible, transparent action. It is not enough to make pronouncements at investment conferences. Government must present detailed plans:
Without clear answers to these questions, such promises risk becoming political theatre, timed to create hope without delivering results.
Mpumalanga stands at a critical juncture. As the heartland of South Africa’s coal industry, our province is both a driver of national energy supply and one of the regions most affected by Eskom’s instability. The energy transition offers opportunities, cleaner power, new green jobs, and investment in modern infrastructure, but this can only succeed if local communities and workers are part of the solution, not left behind.
ActionSA believes that energy security and economic growth must go hand in hand. We therefore call on the provincial and national governments to publish a clear implementation roadmap, including regular progress reports accessible to the public. This roadmap must detail investment, maintenance plans, timelines, and accountability measures for failure to deliver. Civil society, business, and communities must be involved in monitoring this progress, not as spectators, but as active participants holding government to account.
The people of Mpumalanga deserve more than speeches and ribbon-cutting ceremonies. They deserve reliable electricity, functioning local economies, and the dignity that comes with dependable public services. ActionSA will not allow this promise to fade quietly into the background. We will track it, test it, and hold leaders accountable for every missed deadline and broken commitment.
Real leadership is not about making promises in well-lit conference halls. It’s about delivering power to the communities still sitting in the dark.