Cas Coovadia, the CEO of Business Unity South Africa (Busa), has reiterated what transport minister Sindisiwe Chikunga said earlier this week when she opened a Road Safety Summit in Sandton – that approval and implementation of the Freight Logistics Roadmap (FLR) should happen without delay.
Addressing journalists at the event hosted by Uber and the Road Traffic Management Corporation, Chikunga said there was no reason why the blueprint for an improved national transport should not be implemented.
She said even if the Roadmap in its current form is perceived as incomplete or lacking in detail, it should be implemented as a “living document” or working guideline towards immediately addressing and alleviating the country’s inadequate logistics sector.
Coovadia, in a Busa statement released after a bi-monthly meeting between business leaders and members of Cabinet on Tuesday, echoed Chikunga’s sentiments that the Roadmap’s implementation should be treated with the urgency it deserves.
Chikunga said if Cabinet approves the Roadmap this week, it could implemented in December.
Coovadia said business felt that given what has played out at ports like Durban, it was crucial for Cabinet to approve the FLR.
Although Tuesday’s public-private partnership meeting was positive for the most part, with President Cyril Ramaphosa crediting the “significant progress in establishing structures and ways of working” between government and business, there is a clear sense of frustration at the pace of follow-through.
Busa president Adrian Gore said: “In the last six months we have made some real progress and our collaboration structures have been bedded down and are increasingly well-capacitated.”
In its post-meeting statement, Busa said: “Some of the other early tangible successes include adding 2x800 megawatts of power generation capacity, edging closer to the collective goal of ending load shedding by the end of 2024; establishing the Rail Infrastructure Manager for Transnet, paving the way for third party train operators in 2024; and establishing a digital and financial Forensic Analysis Centre.”
However, real progress – if that’s the right word – is too slow, Gore said.
“The pace of delivery across the initiative seems to be plateauing, mainly as a result of delays in regulatory and other approvals, as well as slippage on the implementation of strategic plans, and the alignment of these to workable funding solutions.
“We’ve agreed with the President that delays will be given urgent attention and we will all ensure that momentum is maintained, key decisions are made, and policies implemented in line with agreed timelines.
“We need to act with a greater sense of urgency and determination to confront these challenges, given their severe impact on the economy as a whole.
“We have made strides in implementing reforms that will set our economy on a higher growth trajectory going forward.”
