Government is pushing to reduce administrative delays and streamline public-private partnerships to tackle infrastructure backlogs, while strengthening efforts to support freight movements through the Port of Durban.
Addressing the 170th anniversary gala dinner of the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Durban this week, President Cyril Ramaphosa highlighted eThekwini’s critical role in driving national freight and export volumes.
Ramaphosa praised the municipality’s interventions to cut bureaucratic bottlenecks and accelerate infrastructure delivery. He commended its adoption of the Development and Service Delivery Partnering Policy Framework, aimed at addressing red tape affecting public-private partnerships.
“We now need to put that framework to use to implement key infrastructure projects. We need to take forward the work to revitalise the city’s manufacturing and industrial zones and reduce the costs of doing business,” Ramaphosa said.
The city’s port infrastructure remained central to regional supply chains, he said.
“Durban remains the busiest container port in sub-Saharan Africa. The Durban Gateway Terminal handles nearly half of the country’s containerised freight.”
Ramaphosa acknowledged the serious disruptions at DGT following the migration of its terminal operating system.
“The minister of transport visited the terminal earlier this month to meet its management, and government will continue to monitor the situation closely until operations are fully restored.”
Despite the setbacks experienced by exporters and freight operators in recent years, broader recovery efforts were showing progress, he said.
“The port has faced very real challenges – the unrest of 2021, the floods of 2022, load shedding and insecurity on the freight rail network,” Ramaphosa said.
“Yet we are seeing steady progress. Rail volumes continue to recover. Security incidents and cable theft on the network have declined. Transnet is procuring additional security to protect the central corridor that feeds the Port of Durban.”
International rankings also reflected improvements in port performance, he said.
“The latest World Bank and S&P Global Container Port Performance Index has named the Port of Durban the most improved port in the world. Out of around 400 container ports, Durban recorded the greatest gains in efficiency,” Ramaphosa said.
Despite the improvement, Durban still ranks 398th out of 400 ports globally in overall performance, according to the report.
State agencies and business needed to maintain close collaboration to support manufacturing and export supply chains, Ramaphosa said.
“We thank the chamber for working with government and other stakeholders to support the recovery of the port and of freight rail,” he said.
“As expansion plans for the Port of Durban move ahead, Transnet and the municipality need coordinated plans and solutions.”
