The other day I bought relish from a supermarket – but when I opened the package at the dinner table I realised that it was more food for our dog.
My food budget, already tight because of the cost-of-living crisis, is now even tighter. Buying perishable items in bulk at a cheaper price is completely out of the question as they will just rot.
The government has been encouraging homes and businesses to switch to solar, and has scrapped import taxes for solar equipment to make it cheaper to buy.
But some people say their solar panels do not generate enough electricity when there is little sunlight – and they cannot afford to install more panels. Most Zambians cannot afford solar panels at all.
Now, many families have resorted to cooking and heating water on portable gas stoves – but shops have been running out of gas too because of high demand.
So in desperation and because it is cheaper, they buy charcoal to cook and heat water – despite its negative impact on the environment and the climate.
The electricity crisis has also had an impact on the boreholes that middle-class families have dug on their properties.
As boreholes work with electricity and solar-powered pumps, homes are now also without a constant supply of water, making it impossible to even flush the toilet.
In some schools, children are advised to take five litres of water each day to reduce the possibility of a sanitation crisis – and the outbreak of waterborne diseases like cholera, which hit the country at the start of the year.
Many families now fill buckets – or bath tubs – with water, hoping it will last until the lights are back, and toilets can be flushed.
All of this has left Zambians frustrated and angry. They point out that the blackouts highlight the failure of successive governments to plan ahead – something that President Hichilema’s administration has now pledged to do.
Mr Maumbi said that Zesco was investing in more energy sources, including solar plants, so that dependency on hydro-power falls to around 60%.
But Zambia’s focus is not only on green energy – coal is also in the mix.
In July, the energy regulator approved plans to build only the country’s second coal-fired power plant.
It is the dirtiest fossil fuel, producing the most greenhouse gases when burnt, but the government feels that to avoid a similar crisis in the future, it has little option but to press ahead.
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