Addis Ababa Residents Frustrate Over Surging Electricity Costs

Getahun Tsegaye
Staff Reporter 

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – Many residents in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, are frustrated and have complained to the Ethiopian Electric Utility about their exorbitant electricity bills. Many households are experiencing financial difficulties as a result of this abrupt increase in charges, and they are demanding answers right away.

In order to confirm the increasing volume of social media complaints about these price increases, Borkena spoke with a number of Addis Ababa locals. The names of those interviewed have been changed for security reasons, or only their first names have been used.

Martha, a resident, expressed her intense frustration with the extreme monthly electricity bills. She reported that a 1,000 Ethiopian birr recharge, which previously lasted a month, now barely covers two weeks. “A week ago, I recharged my card with 800 birr, but now it’s gone,” she lamented.

Markos shared a similar experience, expressing outrage over the significantly increased tariff. He stated he is now paying more than double what he used to. He recounted recharging his electricity card with 1,500 birr about two weeks ago, only to find the balance read 1,200 birr when he tapped his card on the in-home electric meter – a 300 birr discrepancy. He added that when he sought an explanation at the branch office where he recharged, the officers were unable to provide answers.

An additional resident, who wished to remain anonymous, described her difficulties with the exorbitant electricity bills. She explained, “Paying rent, affording daily expenses were already a struggle, but these electric bills are becoming unaffordable.” She and her husband, a handyman, live on a fixed monthly salary and raise two children. She used to pay about 800 birr a month, but now she has bills that are more than double that amount, which makes it impossible for her to make ends meet. 

Borkena made an effort to reach out to  the Ethiopian Electric Utility for an explanation. Addressing such complaints was “beyond their scope of authority,” according to a branch office representative, who gave no further information. Several attempts to contact Ethiopian Electric Power’s headquarters for comment were not successful.

A little less than half of Ethiopia’s more than 130 million people to date are without reliable access to electric power, according to reports, especially in rural areas. 

The inauguration of the GERD in September, as the government expects, is eagerly awaited by many citizens. The project would more than double Ethiopia’s current power generation capacity. The giant dam, the largest in Africa, is expected to generate more than 6,000 MW of electricity. 

Millions of citizens and many officials wish that with the completion of GERD, there would be an enhanced power supply with affordable electricity prices than it’s today for the ordinary population. 

However, political considerations, infrastructural capacity, and economic factors will determine if this indeed means cheaper electricity for all Ethiopians.

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