South Africa’s Health Minister Joe Phaahla is discussing with troubled power utility Eskom and other government departments to find ways of exempting health facilities from the current loadshedding, the ministry said on Tuesday.
According to the ministry, Phaahla is concerned about the impact of prolonged periods of power cuts on the provision of health care services across the country.
South Africa has over the past few months experienced rolling power blackouts, with no sign of a long-lasting solution in the foreseeable future.
“Minister has been engaging with the relevant authorities and entities, including Minister of Public Enterprises, Eskom and municipalities on the processes to be followed in order to exempt health facilities from loadshedding,” the ministry said.
It announced that Phaahla has also been working on alternative additional sources to complement diesel-powered generators which are not meant for prolonged outages.
The minister has instructed the ministry’s director general to assess the impact of loadshedding on the health delivery system in the country and is expected to make public the findings this week, the ministry said.
JN/APA