The true cost of cable theft in South Africa is estimated at R187 billion per year – and this was before COVID-19 which forced the already massive cable theft problem through the roof.

Although South Africa is the world leader in cable theft per capita, other countries also suffer. The USA loses almost $1 Billion per year to cable theft and the UK, Latin America and India experience significant copper theft. Copper supply is down and copper prices are rising – all of which do not bode well for South Africa.

In South Africa only 7% of apprehended copper thieves are convicted because cable ownership has to be proven to establish theft and convict the perpetrator. Unemployment, the improbability of prosecution combined with rising copper prices makes the risk acceptable to thieves.

South Africa will continue to feel the effect of loss because of copper theft – and there is no simple solution to this problem. A South African company has developed a world-leading solution to the copper theft scourge – a solution that is causing excitement in various countries. The company integrates patented South African solutions with options other local companies offer to provide a holistic solution to protect cables from manufacturing to installation and even after it has been stolen.

“African problems are best solved by Africans. This breakthrough solution is a world first and we are excited about the acceptance of the solution in other countries” said the CEO of CableDNA. “This unique approach will monitor cables when installed and destroy the illegal copper resale market when the cables are stolen and are being sold. We are proudly South African and our solution is already causing a stir in countries which suffer from cable theft.”

CableDNA is an electrical cable and asset theft prevention company based in South Africa. www.cabledna.co.za