Data journalists at Africa Check today released the first of three fact checks on claims made by the country’s top political parties at their respective manifestos. It’s a useful service, as politicians have been known to bend the truth from time to time in service of their parties’ goals.

Today’s release looks at whether or not the ANC has really delivered as much on electricity and water in communities as it claimed.

Electricity

Claim number one:

According to the manifesto, “The percentage of households that are connected to electricity supply increased from 69.7% in 2001 to 86% in 2014. This amounted to over 5.8 million households in 2014.”

The verdict – mostly correct.

“According to South Africa’s 2001 Census, 69.7% of households used electricity as their main energy source for lighting then. Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) confirmed that this comprised 8 274 455 households at the time,” Africa Check said on its website.

“The latest data from Stats SA’s General Household Survey confirms that 86% of households (a total of 13 403 107) in South Africa were connected to electricity supply in 2014. The number is therefore more than double the figure of 5.8 million in the ANC’s manifesto,” it goes on.

We think Africa Check mis-read this one. Our reading of the text is that the ANC said they’d added an extra 5.8 million households to the South African electricity grid between 2001 and 2014, not that 5.8 million was the total number of households in South Africa connected to the grid by 2014. Going on that, the ANC embellished their performance by 600 000 or so, as the difference between 13.4 million and 8.2 million is 5.2 million.

The conclusion of “mostly correct” stands true, however, as the discrepancy is not mammoth. Opinions on that will vary, of course, but that’s politics for you.

If we were to guess, the confusion is a result of the ambiguity of the ANC’s original statement.

Claim number two:

“Figures show that 2 048 052 households benefited from indigent [subsidised or free to the poor] support systems for electricity in 2014,” the ANC said.

The verdict –  Correct.

According to Africa Check’s research, Stats SA’s non-financial census of municipalities for the year ending June 2014 confirmed that 2 048 052 indigent households had received assistance for electricity, out of the 3 482 260 identified indigent households across the country.

The “Mostly correct” verdict came about as the recommended electricity allowance for those homes is 50kwH per household per month, whereas the non-profit organisation EarthLife Africa has argued that’s not enough, proposing that limit be raised to 200kwH.

Water

Claim number one:

“Between 2001 and 2014, the percentage of households with access to piped water increased from 61.3% in 2001 to 90% in 2014,” the ANC manifesto reads.

The verdict – Misleading.

The party isn’t entirely lying about this claim, but it’s not accurate.

Africa Check pointed out the 61.3% mentioned seems to indicate only the share of households with piped water in their dwellings (32.3%) and in their yards (29%), according to South Africa’s 2001 Census.

“However, the figure of 90% in 2014 includes communal taps and neighbours’ taps, Stats SA’s General Household Survey shows,” the organisation said. “If we include communal and neighbours’ taps as water sources with the 2001 Census data the comparable figure would be 84.5%. If we excluded communal and neighbours’ taps from the 2014 data the comparable figure would be 73.3% – 46.3% in dwellings and a further 27% on site.”

Africa Check also takes a look at the number of homes benefiting from a free water service as well as improvements to sanitation, refuse removal and health, as stated in the manifesto; if you’d like to read those you can do so on Africa Check’s website.

In the coming days, Africa Check will also be fact-checking the DA and EFF’s manifestos.

[Source – Africa Check, image – CC Government ZA]