ESKOM. Company information.

- Eskom generates approximately 95% of the electricity used in South Africa and approximately 45% of the electricity used in Africa. Eskom generates, transmits and distributes electricity to industrial, mining, commercial, agricultural and residential customers and redistributors. Additional power stations and major power lines are being built to meet rising electricity demand in South Africa. Eskom will continue to focus on improving and strengthening its core business of electricity generation, transmission, trading and distribution. Eskom buys electricity from and sells electricity to the countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). The future involvement in African markets outside South Africa (that is the SADC countries connected to the South African grid and the rest of Africa) is limited to those projects that have a direct impact on ensuring security of supply for South Africa. - Eskom is a South African electricity public utility, established in 1923 as the Electricity Supply Commission (ESCOM) by the government of South Africa in terms of the Electricity Act (1922). It was also known by its Afrikaans name Elektrisiteitsvoorsieningskommissie (EVKOM). The two acronyms were combined in 1986 and the company is now known as Eskom. Eskom represents South Africa in the Southern African Power Pool. The utility is the largest producer of electricity in Africa, is among the top seven utilities in the world in terms of generation capacity and among the top nine in terms of sales. Eskom operates a number of notable power stations, including Kendal Power Station, and Koeberg nuclear power station in the Cape Province, the only nuclear power plant in Africa. The company is divided into Generation, Transmission and Distribution divisions and together Eskom generates approximately 95% of electricity used in South Africa. Due to the South African government's attempted privatisation of Eskom in the late 1990s, Eskom's requests for budget to build new stations were denied. President Thabo Mbeki said in December 2007 that this was an error, and it is now adversely affecting the South African economy.[5] In January 2008 Eskom introduced "load shedding", planned rolling blackouts based on a rotating schedule, in periods where short supply threatens the integrity of the grid. Demand-side management has focussed on encouraging consumers to conserve power during peak periods in order to reduce the incidence of load shedding.

Public policy in education. The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education's mission has promoted public policies that enhance Americans' opportunities to pursue and achieve high-quality education and training beyond high school. As an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, the National Center prepared action-oriented analyses of pressing policy issues facing the states and the nation regarding opportunity and achievement in higher education-including two- and four-year, public and private, for-profit and nonprofit institutions. The National Center communicated performance results and key findings to the public, to civic, business and higher education leaders, and to state and federal leaders who were poised to improve higher education policy.Established in 1998, the National Center is not affiliated with any institution of higher education, with any political party, or with any government agency.In working to improve higher education through effective public policy, the National Center served both as a resource and catalyst: a) A Resource for Policy Development. The National Center conducted independent research and analyses of pressing policy issues facing the states and the nation regarding opportunity and achievement in higher education. b) A Catalyst for improving Public Policy. The National Center communicated performance results and key findings to the public, to civic, business, and higher education leaders, and to public officials who are poised to improve public policies regarding higher education. Gender and public policy. Gender is the often un-analyzed dimension of all public policies. From conflict resolution to economic development, public finance to public health, policies rest upon, are shaped by, and shape gender relations. Increasingly, international organizations, national and local governments, and private actors have recognized that gender must be explicitly taken into account if policy goals are to be attained. But how can public policies promote more equitable gender relations; how is gender equityor equalityunderstood in different contexts; and, how can the effects of policieseven when they are ostensibly neutral in terms of their objectivesbe evaluated from the perspective of the gender relations they affect? The specialization in Gender and Public Policy enables students to develop the skills that will allow them to assess, formulate and implement policies that promote greater gender equality. Precisely because gender is such an important dimension of public policy, the specialization is of interest to students in all concentrations.

The specialization draws on a multidisciplinary faculty of scholars and practitioners, promotes systematic interaction with SIPAs extensive resources, and partners with faculty and research centers across the University. Pubic policy in national security. The International and National Security Policy concentration covers the full range of policy relationships among nations, including war and peace, international trade, and international organizations. Students have the opportunity to investigate analytically the fundamental political, social and economic forces driving relations among nations. Several courses in the concentration also facilitate the evaluation of policy alternatives and the prediction of significant international events.

International and National Security Policy Concentration In a world where problems cross borders and disciplines, where threats that were previously thought to be independent are found to be interconnected, where distinctions between what is domestic policy and what is foreign policy are becoming more and more tenuous, students need training and perspective to break down disciplinary silos. They need the tools and dexterity to work across issue areas and in diverse policy arenas. They need to see connections that others miss, and be able to describe and explain those connections so that others will then see them too. The concentration in International Policy Studies aims to train the next generation of policy leaders who will go on to influence policy making in trade, foreign affairs, security, economic development and the environment.