Abstract:
SIGNIFICANCE :
South African households have been affected by load shedding for over a decade. Low-income households
are the most heavily impacted by unreliable electricity supply, rising electricity prices and lack of financial
means to absorb such shocks, subject to their living conditions. Marginalised communities struggle to
access the advantages of urban areas, deepening the country’s income inequalities. Policymaking needs
to address the uneven distribution of the impact with policies and programmes that will improve access to
finance and technologies for sustainable future solutions. However, there is a catch in the implementation
of such policies, as, potentially, measures such as subsidies may exacerbate inequalities and create more
problems in the system. Innovative financial programmes are essential to support low-income households
and ensure fairness in dealing with load shedding effects while promoting socio-economic development and
improving living standards.
