Private sector will have to cough up for multibillion rand infrastructure upgrades

In a bid to create jobs and boost infrastructure, South Africa’s entire transport chain – roads, rail, ports and airports – is set for a multibillion rand boost, according to Transport Director-General George Mahlalela. Addressing delegates at the AfricaRoads 2011 indaba in Sandton last week, Mahlalela said up to R800 million would be spent over the next five years on massive upgrades of roads, rail, ports and airports in the country. In addition R22 billion will be allocated over the next three years for provincial roads infrastructure, to fix potholes, improve rural roads and carry out an asset management register of the country’s road system. The bad news is that not all the money for upgrades will come from government coffers. Money will be made up through public private partnerships and taxation. Mahlalela said that the recent furore over government’s stalled toll road plans did not mean that the public would be let off the hook. “On the one hand we have beautiful roads but people think they don’t have to pay for them…we find ourselves in a situation where infrastructure needs to be replaced but the challenge is how we pay for it without choking the economic livelihood of users,” he said. Transport Minister Sbu Ndebele told Parliament on Wednesday that tolling remained one of the most viable means of funding transport infrastructure all over the world. “Many countries – developing and developed – including China, the United Kingdom and the United States of America use tolling to raise funds for the construction of much-needed transport infrastructure.” The divisional manager of road management systems for the Roads Authority in Namibia, Sophie Tekie, said failure to spend on upgrading infrastructure in her country would lead to further deterioration that would cost even more to fix. Issues relating to safety and creating “an African infrastructure” standard came up at the twoday indaba attended by delegates from all over Africa.