The South African agriculture sector is still raising concerns about load shedding despite the recent address by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa addressed the nation during his State of the Nation Address on Thursday.
However, it seems the sector is facing challenges and Agri SA said they needed more details on the new minister of electricity matte as Ramaphosa announce.
Agri SA chief executive Christo van der Rheede said the sector remained deeply concerned about the ongoing and devastating impact of load shedding on the agricultural sector.
“The announcement of a new ministry of electricity in the Presidency also requires further detail. The powers of this ministry and its distinction from the ministries of mineral resources and energy and public enterprises must be clearly set out to avoid creating a bureaucratic nightmare that hinders rather than accelerates the resolution of the energy crisis,” it said per IOL.
Van der Rheede said given the centrality of food security to the well-being of South Africans and the country’s stability, this intervention must be used to partially exempt the parts of the agricultural sector dependent on electricity for irrigation, packing, processing, and cold storage from load shedding above stage 4.
“It remains to be seen how quickly these projects will come online, enhancing the productivity of the agricultural sector. Agri SA will work tirelessly on these critical interventions to ensure the protection of sustainable food production in South Africa.”
The president also announced the planned use of the state of disaster to exempt critical infrastructure from load shedding, to which Agri SA reiterated its call for the agricultural sector to be declared an essential service under such regulations.
Meanwhile, Agbiz chief executive Theo Boshoff noted that an expectation had been created that must be fulfilled.
“As the president noted, it is a complex problem as solutions are guided by technical limitations in the grid and a lack of clear guidance on the requirements for alternative load-shedding schedules that could better align with the needs of industry,” he said.
“Centralising decision-making within the Presidency will hopefully inject much-needed urgency and provide a response to the proposals the task team has made. We look forward to further engagements in this regard.
“The declaration of a state of disaster represents a clear statement to move forward with greater speed in addressing the energy crisis. This needs to be done in a very focused manner without unnecessary disruption to business or society at large.”
