INLSA
Shabane
Switching geysers off during the day, reducing water consumption and doing away with holidays.
These are among the measures Durban residents are taking to cope as rising living costs bite into disposable income.
Nomfundo Shabane, 32, of KwaMashu, is a single mother of two and lives with her mother, a pensioner, and a brother, who shares in the monthly expenses.
Shabane works as a day mother, looking after a disabled child and takes home just under R5 000 a month. After all her expenses are paid, she is left with R700 for her daily bread and milk, and other essentials.
She is cautious of her electricity usage and water consumption.
The geyser in the Shabane household is switched off during the day and water is used sparingly. Fans are only switched on in extreme heat and the family uses a pre-paid electricity meter to control their usage, which stands at about R100 a week.
Shabane sets aside R1 500 for groceries and about R800 a month for travel expenses.
“The taxi drivers are not to blame for the high fares; the petrol price is unfair on everybody,” she said.
Dee Pieterse, a single mother of two from Queensburgh, says her total household income is R13 000 a month. After paying all her bills, she is often left with just R100 in her pocket at the end of the month.
Pieterse, an office manager for an occupational therapist, pays for her car, its insurance, home security contract, cellphone bills for herself and her daughter, medical aid, her daughter’s student loan and groceries.
Her petrol bill has doubled over the past year by R500 and, although the family uses electricity wisely, turning off lights and the geyser when not needed, Pieterse feels that the electricity bill is still high.
She is considering buying a gas geyser to reduce the bill.
To cope, Pieterse has adjusted the family’s diet to include more lentils, and she has started a garden with spinach and is expanding on the different types of vegetables in it. “We have a rain- water tank at home which is used for the gardening.”
Pieterse has started shopping in an “economically smart” fashion and looks out for specials at stores near her.
Buying clothes has become a once-a-year affair when her birthday comes around and she receives gift cards, while holidays have become a thing of the past.
