Ports advisory body ready for action

The recent appointment of the members of the seven Port Consultative Committees (PCCs) and their central body, the National Ports Consultative Committee (NPCC), creates a vital advisory body to the minister of transport in formulating policy that will best satisfy the needs of the ports and their users. According to Riad Khan, CEO of the Ports Regulator, the committees and their central body form a proper consultative forum – able to make decisions on problems before they become critical. And he emphasised that the bodies had to contain senior voices in the various sectors of industry and government that composed them. “They will be making decisions on matters such as capital expenditure (capex) at the ports, pricing of services in the ports and policy matters,” Khan told FTW. “As such, the members have to be from industry levels that have an extensive grounding in matters of this import.” The minister of transport has now appointed a PCC for each of the seven ports in SA. Their function – for any matter concerning the respective port – includes providing a forum for exchange of views between the Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) and other interested parties, and advising the minister. At the same time the TNPA must consult the PCC on any major scheme relating to the expansion or development at the relevant port as well as any other matter on which the minister may require the authority to consult the committee. Each PCC comprises two representatives of the TNPA; three representatives of the port users bodies; one local and one central government representative; two representatives of organised labour; and one representative of the SA Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa). The NPCC comprises one representative of each PCC; four national government representatives; one representative of the National Port Users’ Forum (NPUF); one representative of labour; and one representative of the TNPA. This central body will advise the minister on national commercial ports policy matters and measures that need to be taken to improve the regulatory framework governing management and operation of ports. It also needs to consider any proposed substantial alterations to the TNPA’s tariffs.