THE Small Business Institute (SBI) has called on the government to accelerate the implementation of measures to stabilise Eskom.
Its CEO John Dludlu said it is cold comfort to many South Africans to hear news of stage 6 load shedding.
He said the economy, especially small businesses which are supposed to create 90% of jobs in 2030, is suffering from the rolling blackouts.
“Load shedding is undermining everything we are trying to achieve as a country from growth, to jobs and poverty reduction. The investment drive by the president is being hobbled by uncertainty arising from unreliable power supply,” he said.
Dludlu said while the institute welcomes the news that the president will cut short his overseas travels to attend to the energy crisis, it urges the government to speed up the implementation of the plans it announced a month ago, especially those relating to stabilising Eskom.
“For example, it is inexplicable why government as Eskom’s sole shareholder has not strengthened the board with appropriately qualified directors in the face of a deepening crisis,” said Dludlu.
He said SBI is calling for the removal of remaining restrictions to licensing independent power producers, and those with excess power should be allowed to sell it to the national grid.
“If we are serious about inclusive growth, we need to urgently tackle the Eskom crisis otherwise we should forget about creating jobs, and our long-suffering small businesses, our best hope, will continue dying in numbers,” he said.
