The current electricity shortage in Zambia will harm the economy and may scare away potential investors, an official told Xinhua. 
Yusuf Dodia, the chairperson of the Private Sector Development Association, in an interview expressed concern over the impact of the power shortage on the economy.
“We should not underrate the negative impact this will have on our economy. It has the capacity to bring the economy to a halt and most importantly it will scare away investors. No investor is ready to invest in a country where there is uncertainty on available electricity,” he said.
The power utility, Zesco, has introduced power rationing as long as eight hours per day, and warned of more power cuts.
The southern African nation is facing a deficit of 560 megawatts in power blamed on reduced water levels caused by low rainfall. About 90 percent of Zambia’s electricity is from hydropower.
Dodia called for more investment in electricity generation. He said that although the country has the capacity to produce 6,000 megawatts of hydroelectricity, it had failed to do so due to lack of investment.
“We are suffering the consequences of not investing in power generation for the past 20 years and this problem may continue for the next three to four years because demand has continued to increase,” he added.
The power rationing has affected both industries and citizens. Zesco has asked mining firms to reduce their electricity consumption. Enditem
