•Police should provide hotlines dedicated to reporting vandalism activities.
•Recently, Kenya suffered a countrywide power outage due to the collapse of a tower
Image: COURTESY
On 17 November 2015, a major disruption of Nigeria’s national power grid occurred. Tower number 62 along the Okpai-Onitsha 330 kV double circuit transmission line collapsed, resulting in the loss of 480 megawatts of power. Vandals had cut two legs of the transmission tower.
Last November, vandalized pylon supports resulted in a nine-hour electricity blackout in South Africa’s Gauteng Province. The State-owned power utility Eskom claimed there was an ‘orchestrated sabotage campaign’ targeting the country’s energy infrastructure.
Recently, Kenya suffered a countrywide power outage due to the collapse of a tower along a high-voltage transmission line linking Nairobi to the Kiambere hydroelectric plant. It later emerged the tower had been vandalized.
Similar incidents have been reported in other parts of the country in the past, with unscrupulous scrap metal dealers largely blamed for the increased cases of vandalism of electricity infrastructure.
Terming this economic sabotage, President Uhuru Kenyatta recently banned any further dealing in scrap metal until measures are put in place to control trade and export of the commodity.
Metal vandals have also targeted roads, railways and street lighting, thus endangering the lives and safety of Kenyans, not to mention undermining the efficiency of such infrastructure.
The vice is reportedly fueled by rising demand for steel, copper and other metals in the local and global markets. For instance, copper wire in power transformers is a much-sought material by vandals who then sell it to cartels that export metals to countries like China where demand is high.
Steel is 100 per cent recyclable. Scrap steel is preferred because it uses 60 per cent less energy to process into quality steel products than manufacturing the same from iron ore.
High demand due to increased construction activities could also be driving the proliferation of illicit trade in the metal.
Therefore, the first step toward securing Kenya’s critical energy infrastructure is taking decisive action against scrap metal criminal syndicates. This entails creating an environment that is hostile to their continued survival.
Kenya has a law regulating the trade in scrap metal that needs to be strictly enforced. The Scrap Metal Act 2015 establishes the Scrap Metal Council as the State agency tasked with, among other things, developing “appropriate measures and mechanisms for protecting the public interest against vandalism, theft of utility infrastructure and private property.”
The Council is also supposed to be the licensing authority for metal dealers. The Act is clear that no person is allowed to deal in used metal unless they have a licence and are registered members of the Scrap Metal Dealers Association.
However, the Council is reportedly yet to be fully operationalised, thus leaving the scrap metal industry highly unregulated and at the mercy of cartels said to involve thieves, traders, politicians and even compromised security officials.
The following interventions, in my view, will help tame the thriving black market in scrap metal in Kenya.
First, fully operationalize the Scrap Metal Council and give it sufficient legal and financial teeth to effectively police the highly unregulated scrap metal industry.
The Council should urgently develop and enforce guidelines on the trade in used metal. It is important to mention that not all dealers in scrap metal are involved in the theft, hence the need to come up with a robust licensing regime to facilitate the weeding out of criminal actors.
Second, embrace a multi-agency approach in protecting critical energy infrastructure. The Critical Infrastructure Police Unit (CIPU) should take the lead on this, working closely with other national security agencies but also involving key industry stakeholders.
Public agencies acting as custodians of critical infrastructure should also be actively involved in assessing and mitigating threats.
And thirdly, complete ongoing reforms geared to enhancing transparency and accountability in the energy sector. Special focus should be on revamping the security and integrity of the transmission and distribution network.
With the Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (Ketraco) now fully gazetted as the national grid system operator (replacing Kenya Power), it (Ketraco) should be held accountable for any lapses in ensuring the stability, reliability and security of the power transmission network from the generation plants to the distribution point.
Fourthly, conduct public sensitisation campaigns on the need to protect critical infrastructure to safeguard the proper functioning of the economy. The ministries of energy, interior and communications should spearhead this effort by working with media and various private sector and community groups.
Such campaigns should create a clear connection in the minds of Kenyans between the vandalism of energy assets and its disruptive impact on businesses and households.
Fifth, is to strengthen community policing at the local level to enhance vigilance against criminal activities such as theft of transformers and metals used in the construction of power transmission lines.
Police should provide hotlines dedicated to reporting vandalism activities for security agencies to take timely action.
These and other long-term interventions will help safeguard the national grid from the threat posed by criminal gangs targeting this vital infrastructure without regard to the immense danger they pose to the lives and livelihoods of Kenyans.
Mr Murumba is the CEO, of Impulso Kenya Limited Email: [email protected]