Imagine living without electricity for 13 years. No lights at night. No refrigerator to keep food fresh. No television, no computer, no charging your phone at home. For the community of Zebediela Moletlane in Limpopo, this is not imagination. It is daily reality.
This community is one of many in South Africa where access to electricity remains limited or non-existent. But its longevity in the dark makes it a particularly stark example of service delivery failure. Thirteen years is not a temporary backlog. It is a generation of children growing up without power.
The Question in Parliament
ANC MP Mogodu Moela recently raised the issue in Parliament, directly asking Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa what steps have been taken to address basic service delivery in Zebediela Moletlane. The community, Moela pointed out, has been without electricity for more than 13 years.
Ramokgopa’s response acknowledged the problem. His department is aware of the “longstanding electricity backlogs” affecting the community, particularly in new extensions and infill areas that remain without supply.
He explained that in the 2022/23 financial year, the government allocated money to Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipalitythe municipality responsible for Zebediela Moletlaneto implement electrification in the affected areas.
But the project was not completed as planned.
Where the Money Went
The minister cited “capacity constraints, as well as internal operational and bureaucratic delays within the municipality” as the reasons for failure. Procurement processes dragged on. Service providers were not appointed in time. The money was there, but the system couldn’t deliver.
This is a familiar story in South African service delivery. Funds are allocated. Projects are announced. Then nothing happens. Municipalities lack the technical skills, the administrative capacity, or simply the will to execute. Residents continue to wait.
A New Allocation, A New Promise
Now, the government has allocated an additional R18.6 million over the current Medium Term Expenditure Framework to electrify areas that still lack access, including the Moletlane extensions and infill settlements.
Ramokgopa also announced the establishment of a task team involving his department and Eskom to work closely with the municipality. “The Task Team will provide technical assistance and implementation support to help resuscitate and accelerate the electrification programme,” he said.
The team’s mandate is specific: clear procurement and delivery bottlenecks, strengthen technical readiness, and improve coordination and oversight across all implementing parties.
“This intervention is intended to eradicate the electrification backlog in Ward 12 and contribute to government’s objective of achieving universal access to electricity by 2030,” Ramokgopa said.
The 2030 Target
The National Development Plan sets an ambitious goal: more than 90% of the population should enjoy access to grid-connected or off-grid electricity by 2030. The plan envisions an energy sector that promotes social equity through expanded access at affordable tariffs and targeted subsidies for needy households.
But the NDP also acknowledges a crucial point: access is not merely an infrastructure issue. It is also an affordability concern.
“Even where infrastructure is available, households can often not afford enough electricity and water to cook and stay warm, or the fares to go to town to look for work,” the plan states.
For Zebediela Moletlane, even infrastructure is not available. The affordability question is moot when there is no power to afford.
The Pricing Problem
Since 2009, South Africa’s electricity prices have risen by more than 600%, not including the 8.76% tariff hike set to kick in on 1 April 2026 for customers supplied directly by Eskom. Inflation over the same period? Roughly double. Electricity has vastly outpaced the cost of living.
This has priced many households out of access, regardless of whether infrastructure exists. It has also driven a rise in illegal connections, which cost Eskom revenue and necessitate further price increasesa vicious cycle.
The Subsidy That Doesn’t Reach
The government offers Free Basic Electricitya minimum amount of power given to households that meet certain conditions. But a Stats SA report released in 2025 showed that the percentage of consumer units using the service dropped from 25% to 14% between 2014 and 2023.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has sounded the alarm. It estimated that 5.4 million, or almost 80% of eligible households, did not receive this service in 2020.
The OECD attributed this to poor targeting, with many municipalities lacking registries of indigent households, weak administration, and coordination issues between Eskom and municipalities when the utility is responsible for delivery.
“Additionally, the Free Basic Electricity programme currently provides an insufficient amount of free electricity to meet basic needs, such as cooking and heating fully,” the OECD said. “Estimates suggest that the FBE allocation would need to be increased by 50% to support eligible households adequately.”
The Human Cost
For the people of Zebediela Moletlane, these are not statistics. They are daily life. Children study by candlelight or paraffin lamps. Food spoils without refrigeration. Small businesses that depend on power cannot operate. The digital divide is not abstractit is the gap between homes with electricity and those without.
Thirteen years is a long time to wait. It is longer than many children have been alive. It is longer than some adults have been in their homes. It is a testament to systemic failure that a community can remain in the dark for so long while government after government makes promises.
The Task Team’s Challenge
The newly announced task team has a clear mission but a difficult path. Clearing procurement bottlenecks requires competence and political will. Strengthening technical readiness requires skills that municipalities often lack. Improving coordination requires overcoming institutional silos and rivalries.
The R18.6 million allocation is significant, but money alone does not electrify homes. Execution does. And execution has been the missing ingredient for 13 years.
Will 2030 Be Different?
The NDP’s 2030 target is just four years away. For Zebediela Moletlane, achieving universal access by then would mean finally seeing lights after nearly two decades of darkness. It would mean catching up on years of missed development, missed opportunities, missed dignity.
It is possible. With focused effort, adequate resources, and competent implementation, the backlog can be cleared. But possibility is not certainty. The community has heard promises before. It has seen allocations announced and projects fail. Trust is in short supply.
The task team’s work will be watched closelynot just by Zebediela Moletlane, but by every community still waiting for the grid to reach them. If this intervention succeeds, it will be a model. If it fails, it will be another broken promise in a long line of them.
For now, the residents wait. Thirteen years and counting. The lights are still off.
