Across the country, a schedule of power cuts dictates two- to four-hour periods when power supply is cut off, and this is done in stages: Stage 1 means the least loadshedding, while Stage 8 could mean hours and hours of load shedding. In addition, the schedules vary from region to region and municipality to municipality. In some areas, schedules are implemented more efficiently than in others - and Eskom sometimes changes from one stage to another with very little notice.
Living in Harare has altered how I work as a journalist. When we are without electricity for an extended period of time, I get concerned and uneasy. But I still have to make certain that my responsibilities are met without fail. Solar energy has been a great way to offset the costs of my energy demands and has given me relief from load-shedding.
"Sometimes, my UPS is not fully charged when we get hit again by power cuts, leaving us to resort to mobile hot-spotting, which, by the way, is very expensive. Worse, if it's load shedding, my mobile network gets really crappy and sometimes won't have any service. As a result, sometimes I miss critical deadlines or important and urgent emails."
Esther Rose, a colleague who's based in Cape Town, has adjusted her work schedule - and has grappled with an ever-changing set of working tools."At the beginning, I used a dongle loaded with airtime and hot-spotted at times to keep working. I then went on to Telkom ADSL internet - 20 mbps and then Telkom fibre for higher speeds - 25 mbps and then 50 mbps," she said.