Last week I had new Peace Corps Trainees (PCTs) visit me for
a few days. The purpose of the visit is to show PCTs, brand new to South
Africa, what it is like to be a day-to-day Peace Corps Volunteer. During their
3-month training, they, like I did, will get intensive language instruction,
background history for South Africa, and an introduction to the various work of
Peace Corps Volunteers in the Community HIV/AIDS Outreach Program. The visit is
mostly meant to settle their nerves and give them a sneak peak of what is to
come.
My two
visitors were James (40s) and Jonathan (60s). Jonathan was a Peace Corps
Volunteer in the 70s in Thailand and then became a Physicians Assistant with
the military before joining a private practice and finally settling on joining
the Peace Corps again. James is a lawyer from California who wanted a change in
his life and decided on the Peace Corps. We spent two days checking out my
village: going to my org’s office, the Drop-In Center, the tribal office, the
clinic, the greenery, and a few spots around the village I really enjoy taking
people to (the “water” tower, for those who have visited me!)
Throughout the
entire three days, I kept having flashbacks to my site visit over a year ago
when I was asking similar questions, having the same problems understanding how
things worked (or didn’t work) and overall being in awe of a volunteer who had
already made it a year. While I am sure neither James or Jonathan was in awe, it
was a great reminder for me that I’ve already made it an entire year! Time
flies, no matter where you are.
Eskom, the government power utility
company, has been making headlines in South Africa for about the past year. Eskom
has had trouble producing the power necessary to keep everything running in
South Africa. Considering that Eskom also produces 45% of the energy on the continent, this is a pretty big
problem but only recently has it been getting the criticism it deserves. For
some time last year, and continuously so far in 2015, Eskom has implemented
what it calls “load shedding.” This term describes the rolling blackouts Eskom
uses to ensure the power grid doesn’t overload. Typically, 3-4 times a week
(sometimes more, sometimes less) the power will shut off on the hour and return
about 2 to 2 ½ hours later. This really isn’t a big deal, as PCVs we signed up
to go without electricity; so going a few hours here and there isn’t so bad.
However, businesses all over South Africa are really suffering from a loss of
business or a loss of product. Imagine South Africa’s mining industry, one of
the largest in the world, being shut down on a daily basis because the power
company in unreliable. Or a restaurant, unable to cook for people (who can’t
cook themselves at home) losing out on valuable business.
The government has proposed a
bailout for Eskom and South Africans everywhere are hoping the company can fix
its generators, coal silos, etc. soon. Otherwise, as Eskom has warned, we may
be plunged into perpetual darkness for two or more weeks if “one more
unexpected problem occurs.”
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