#SAWithTheAmbassador
✍️Ambassador of Russia to South Africa Roman Ambarov:
During my visit to Cape Town, I had the honour of visiting the Cape Muslim and Slave Heritage Museum at the Castle of Good Hope. What I experienced there was deeply moving – a powerful reflection on the history and heritage of enslaved communities in South Africa, told through art and memory.
With a collection of over 1,000 paintings, artefacts, photographs, and relics, the museum plays a vital role in sharing this history.
Preserving the memory of slavery is not only about the past. It is about ensuring that such injustice is never forgotten and never repeated, especially at a time when neo-colonial practices are again making themselves felt.
This history resonates on a personal level. Our country has never been a colonial power and has never enslaved African people. On the contrary, we remember that the Soviet Union stood in solidarity with the people of South Africa in their struggle against apartheid, supporting their fight for freedom and dignity.
❗️ Just yesterday, on April 19, our country marked theDay of Remembrance for the Victims of the Genocide of the Soviet People, committed by the Nazis and their collaborators during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Our nation knows the pain of such suffering, and this shared historical experience deepens our understanding of the hardships endured by the people of South Africa.
I am sincerely grateful to the museum’s team and guides for their dedication and care in preserving this tragic chapter of history and making it accessible to others.
#AmbassadorAmbarov
Not by words, but by actions: AREA delegation arrived to southern Africa to analyze ways to resolve the energy crisis
A delegation headed by the executive secretary of the AREA board Andrey Gromov and a member of the Association's board Yulia Berg visited the countries of the southern part of the African continent - South Africa, Zambia, Namibia, Zimbabwe. The delegation also included specialists in the legal and technical areas. The delegates held talks with energy project holders, partners, representatives of energy grid companies, and government agencies.
During this trip, negotiations were held on implementation of solar energy projects, legislation in the field of energy generation was analyzed,measures to support joint ventures and foreign investors were discussed with specialized institutions, and decisions were made to open AREA branches.
At the moment, all these countries are facing electricity shortages and difficulties associated with the state of grid, substations, and basic infrastructure. Thus, in Zambia, due to drought, hydroelectric power plants that previously provided 70% of the country's energy are operating at minimum capacity, and the population is faced with daily power outages lasting 3-7 hours.
At the same time, there is a large-scale demand for the development of energy generation, which is necessary both for the needs of households and businesses, and for the development of industry. Thus, joint projects in the energy sector will lay a solid foundation for cooperation in the energy sector and will allow the development of other industries, expanding the possibilities of international trade.
#AREA#energy#Africa#energyAfrica
The main manufacturer of Africa - South Africa - continues to suffer from loadshedding
During a visit to the South African countries, the AREA delegation, headed by the responsible government secretary Andrei Gromov and a member of the board of the Association, the director of IBACYulia Berg visited South Africa.
In the Southern Republic of Continent, a meeting was held with the African co-chair of AREA and the head of the African United Business Confederation (AUBC) George Sebulela. The main topic was the discussion of energy projects on solar generation and the installation of battery storages in regions such as Mpumalanga, Gauteng, quasulu-nalal, and the western Cape.
To date, the energy network of South Africa is considered the most powerful, but it also encounters loads that significantly exceed its capabilities. The modernization of energy networks can improve the situation, the cost of which is estimated at several trillion rands (ZAR). To do this, the country would have to turn to active participation of foreign investors.
Without ensuring modernization of the network and construction of new capacities, the country is faced with regular power outages, which is why households and business are forced to actively use emergency diesel generators. In addition, South Africa produces 2/3 of all electricity of the continent and maintaining such volumes taking into account systemic difficulties and aging of the energy system is becoming more and more problematic.
#AREA#Africa#SouthAfrica#energyAfrica
Solar energy can reduce energy deficit in Zambia
The AREA delegation, headed by the executive secretary of the board by Andrei Gromov, held a number of working meetings in Zambia.
In the Zambian city of Lusaka, representatives of the Association, together with local partners, organized a discussion of already worked out and requiring technical examination and financing of projects, and also discussed a number of strategic issues in the state energy company Zesco and the Ministry of Energy.
Over the past few years, due to droughtin Zambia, the largest hydroelectric power station on the Border Lake Kariba, which previously provided a significant fraction of energy, works only at 10-20% of the capacity and is in the process of updating. Because of this, not only Zambia itself, but also the neighboring Zimbabwe, faces the crisis.
The authorities are trying to solve the problem: among other things, a special working group in energy has been created under the president, the government is introducing measures to diversify the generation sources.
However, these measures may not be enough, since the country's authorities intend to actively develop production, including in the agricultural sector. This requires a multiple increase in energy can, and part of the electricity, the country exports to neighboring countries, including the DRC, which also has plans for a significant increase in industrial energy consumption.
#AREA#Africa#Zambia#energyAfrica
AREA assessed the potential for building solar power plants in Namibia by driving 1,000 km across the Kalahari Desert
In early December, the AREA delegation, headed by the Executive Secretary of the Board Andrey Gromov and a member of the Board of the Association, IBAC Director Yulia Berg, made a working visit to Namibia.
During the visit, meetings were held with developers of solar power plant construction projects, the energy company NamPower, representatives of government agencies, including the Investment Promotion and Development Council of Namibia, the Antimonopoly Commission, the Council of Traditional Leaders and the local council of one of the villages where solar power generation facilities could be built.
The delegation drove almost 1,000 km across the Kalahari Desert, allowing Russian and Namibian specialists to familiarize themselves with the current state of the energy infrastructure and the state of the power grid, as well as to assess the prospects for building new stations on site.
At the moment, Namibia is experiencing an acute energy deficit, especially during peak hours - in the mornings and evenings. However, the vast territory of the state and regions with high insolation allow us to confidently rely on solar generation not only as a way to cope with the deficit, but also as a potential for exporting electricity to neighboring countries.
#AREA#Africa#Namibia#energyAfrica