A report posted yesterday that Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) believes South African port charges to be a fair reflection of efficient service delivery, although these charges are perceived to be too high, has unsurprisingly elicited a fair amount of cynicism.
In the report, (read it here: https://tinyurl.com/3et7c3jb) TNPA managing director, Siyabulele Mhlaluka, not once referred to the findings of the Container Port Performance Index (CPPI) conducted by the World Bank and London-based economical risk research company, IHS Markit.
Had he done so, May’s revelation that South Africa’s ports occupied the bottom of the barrel of the continent’s ports according to the CPPI’s findings, would’ve cast a shadow over his lofty views of TNPA’s service rendering.
In a poll to gauge response to Mhlaluka views (see it here: https://tinyurl.com/455jjbme), one of the participants said: “It should come as no surprise that the Ports Authority ignored and brushed aside the World Bank report (CPPI).
“They are however fooling themselves into a belief that is simply not true, which makes things worse as it is this belief that blocks all room for improvement.”
Another participant pointed out that TNPA’s defence of port charges, widely perceived to be too high, could hardly be taken seriously, considering state-owned utility Transnet’s monopoly hold over the country’s ports.
He said that in order to objectively determine whether there was a link between service delivery and port charges, it would be interesting to see what would happen if competition was introduced.
“South Africa's export performance has dwindled and not due to global demand. Port charges and inefficiencies are just some of the inhibitors in SA's domestic ecosystem, which results in a less competitive exporter environment.”
Thus far, 100% of the people who have taken the poll have answered ‘yes’ to the question whether port charges in South Africa are too high.