Pensions, not ports, are benefiting says Shippers Council head
THE INFRASTRUCTURE in South Africa's major harbours is in need of immediate attention, but wharfage charges, which should be made available for this purpose, are being channelled in other directions, says Nolene Lossau, executive director of the SA Shippers Council.
For the past five years Portnet has used these charges to make up its pension fund deficit and that is working totally against the stability of harbour infrastructure, she says.
We need new quays to be built, channels to be dredged and berthing facilities restored to top class condition. We need to have the best infrastructure available to meet international demands.
But R1,7 billion paid by exporters and importers last year was siphoned off to boost the pension fund, and a further R1,8 billion was taken out for the same purpose in 1998. We can't allow this to continue and it is something Portnet must face up to without delay.
Few harbours worldwide levy wharfage charges any longer and among those that do South Africa is considered the most expensive.
It is a subject into which Rob Childs delved during his brief stay as chief executive of Portnet, and which his successor, Siyabonga Gama, has inherited. Gama has given an undertaking to address the issue at his earliest opportunity, but he has a considerable number of pressing matters with which to deal and it may take some time before the wharfage issue is rectified.
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