ESWATINI’S 2ND HIGHEST ELECTRICITY ACCESS RATE

MBABANE – A latest report from Power Africa suggests Eswatini has one of the highest rates of electricity access in the SACU region.

Eswatini is one of five members of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) alongside Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and regional powerhouse South Africa. The figures rank Eswatini second behind South Africa with an access rate of 87 per cent (95 per cent urban and 83 rural). When it comes to generation capacity, hydro dominates with 60 per cent followed by biomass and solar with 39 and one per cent, respectively. According to report, leading the pack in the SACU region in terms of the access rate is South Africa with 95 per cent.

Capacity

According to the neighbouring country’s Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy, South Africa’s total domestic electricity generation capacity is 58 095 megawatts (MW) from all sources. Currently, coal is by far the major energy source for South Africa, comprising around 80 per cent of the country’s energy mix. However, according to the 2019 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), 24 100 MW of conventional thermal power sources, specifically coal, are likely to be decommissioned within the next 10-30 years. For Botswana, the national overall electricity access rate is placed at 60 per cent. Namibia and Lesotho’s rates are said to be at 56 and 26 per cent, in that order.

Meanwhile, experts say access to energy is at the heart of development. Lack of sufficient power generation capacity, poor transmission and distribution infrastructure, high costs of supply to remote areas, or simply a lack of affordability for electricity, are said to be among the biggest hurdles for extending grid-based electricity.

Access

Access to electricity is also a key pillar when it comes to ease of doing business. The getting electricity indicators measure the procedures, time and cost required for a business to obtain a permanent electricity connection for a newly-constructed warehouse. Additionally, the reliability of supply and transparency of tariffs index measures supply reliability, transparency of tariffs and the price of electricity. Eswatini was last ranked 121 among 190 economies in the ease of doing business, according to the World Bank annual ratings.

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