SANRAL by CMB Media Group

SANRAL

SANRAL Maps Out Plan for

Horizon 2030 PRODUCTION: Karl Pietersen

A new long-term vision and a number of major projects helping to develop South Africa’s ‘economic arteries’ make SANRAL one of the most important SOEs in the country. This major road construction and engineering firm is pumping money into the economy and helping to drive the growth of SMMEs all over South Africa. Horizon 2030, aligned with the NDP, is a new strategy that will ensure the business continues to deliver on its mandate for the people of South Africa. www.enterprise-africa.net / 3

INDUSTRY FOCUS: INFRASTRUCTURE

// IF PEOPLE NEED TO MOVE FROM ONE END OF OUR COUNTRY TO ANOTHER, THEY NEED TO BE ABLE TO DO SO IN A SAFE AND RAPID MANNER, USING INFRASTRUCTURE THAT IS RELIABLE, AND THEIR JOURNEY MUST BE ENJOYABLE //

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Never far from controversy, South Africa’s National Roads Agency Ltd (SANRAL) is a state-owned company that aims to be a world leader in the provision of a superior national road network. In South Africa, around 160,000km of the entire network is classed as paved road, and SANRAL is responsible for around 22,000km. The country has more than 450,000km of gravel road, and more than 130,000km of un-proclaimed gravel road, bringing the grand total to around 750,000km – making South Africa’s road network the tenth largest in the world. A journey from Cape Agulhas in the south, to the Limpopo River separating SA and Zimbabwe in the north, will take more than 20 hours and you would cover more than 2000km. And it is SANRAL’s roads that would ensure the journey is smooth and easy. Tasked with financing, improving, managing and maintaining the national road network – or the ‘economic arteries’ of South Africa – this business is vital to the prosperity of the country. The vision of the country-critical organisation is to ‘ensure our national road transport system delivers a better South Africa for all.’ But its business is not easy and SANRAL finds itself facing a funding crisis, struggling to satisfy demand, and the company has been the butt of negative sentiment thanks to an ongoing e-toll dispute with Gauteng road users. However, under the direction of CEO Skhumbuzo Macozoma, SANRAL continues to deliver significant projects that impact heavily on local communities and modernise the road network for the benefit of all. The civil engineering-Masters Degree educated, former-CSIR and Department of Transport employee joined SANRAL as CEO, replacing Nazir Alli, in 2016 having previously served two terms on the company’s board. The Johannesburg native knew

SANRAL

that when he joined SANRAL, the first job would be to restore confidence, trust and positive perception in the parastatal. He is doing this by successfully and consistently delivering vital projects. “In 2018, against a difficult background, there were some significant highpoints that served to remind us just how important the national road network is in facilitating the movement of goods and services and connecting people to economic opportunities,” he says. “On the N2 Wild Coast Road we started with the construction of the 1.1km long bridge across the Mtentu Gorge. On completion this will be the longest main span cantilever bridge on the African continent. An upgraded N2 will significantly cut

down travel time between Durban and East London and create new opportunities for growth and development along the eastern seaboard. “Inland we started with major improvements to three intersections on the N14 between Olifantshoek and Kathu. This road connects the Northern Cape with the urban metros in Gauteng and plays a vital road in the lives of people who live in contiguous rural communities. “On the N2 north of Durban the new Mount Edgecombe intersection is complete. This improved stretch of road and intersection brings relief from congestion for commuters travelling to the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast and further stimulates the growth of the tourism and leisure

industries in the region. “In Mpumalanga, work is progressing on the N11 near Middelburg in the Steve Tshwete District. This includes the reconstruction of the existing road and the widening of the Kranspoort Pass, an infrastructure investment of more than R415m.” HORIZON 2030 In October 2017, SANRAL unveiled its new long-term strategy, titled Horizon 2030. This decade-long plan details how the company will move forward, learning lessons from the past to address modern challenges. In 2018, the company entered its third decade managing the country’s roads and Horizon 2030 paves the way forward as Macozoma explains. “If people need to move from one

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INDUSTRY FOCUS: INFRASTRUCTURE

// AS A DYNAMIC ORGANISATION WHICH PLACES HIGH VALUE ON INNOVATION AND MODERNISATION, WE EMBRACE THE CHANGES AND ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING WITH NEW AND EXISTING STAKEHOLDERS ON OUR JOURNEY TOWARDS HORIZON 2030 // end of our country to another, they need to be able to do so in a safe and rapid manner, using infrastructure that is reliable, and their journey must be enjoyable. “The publication of Horizon 2030 was a seminal moment in SANRAL’s development as the stateowned company responsible for managing South Africa’s primary road network. The strategy provides the organisation with a new, shared vision and identifies the actions that are required to meet our objectives over the next decade. It confirms SANRAL’s reputation as a progressive entity within the South African public sector and a leading agency in the

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fields of engineering, construction and road management within the global environment.” Safety is a particularly strong area of focus set out in Horizon 2030. “We are going to elevate road safety to a pillar in the company,” he says. “Although law enforcement is not our responsibility, when we have built safe roads, operations tend to make our roads unsafe and so we want to contribute and support law enforcement agencies by developing technology that will make it easier for us to manage behaviour by drivers. “The improvement of reputation does not rest in how much money you spend on communication. It is about

demonstrating to the public that you are true to your mandate, and in everything that you do, you have the best interests of the citizens of the country in mind.” Horizon 2030 has been deliberately aligned with South Africa’s National Development Plan (NDP), a wider government framework which aims to eliminate poverty and reduce inequality by 2030. PROJECT FOCUSED “The road to success is always under construction” - a famous quote from American actress Lily Tomlin, and it is certainly true at SANRAL. With several large projects underway right

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ENGINEERING PASSION AND A DREAM FOR TRUE ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION Why Merchelle’s? Merchelles’ core values are to always make a difference, by adding value, striving to meet Client objectives, taking the environment and communities into consideration, providing exposure and growth for others in need, whilst striving for true economic transformation. The company remains committed not only to living up to industry standards, but to exceed them, setting the bar for small professional businesses. Merchelle’s wishes to thank its Clients, fellow consulting engineering firms and suppliers for their invaluable support which has contributed significantly to the growth of the company.

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//THE IMPROVEMENT AND EXPANSION OF KEY ECONOMIC CORRIDORS, HAVE SUBSTANTIALLY IMPROVED MOBILITY AND IN THE PROCESS, STIMULATING ECONOMIC GROWTH IN THE KEY PRODUCTION CENTRES AND AREAS WITH DEPRESSED ECONOMIC POTENTIAL //

now, 2019 looks set to be a busy and exciting year. In the Eastern Cape, SANRAL will build Africa’s second-longest main span bridge near Lusikisiki over the Msikaba gorge as part of the N2 Wild Coast project. It will also be the third highest bridge in Africa at 195m above the valley floor behind the Bloukrans bridge (216m) and the Mtentu bridge (under construction at 223m). Construction is set to begin in 2019’s Q1 and be completed in 2021. In the Joe Gqabi District Municipality in the Eastern Cape, where 22% of SANRAL’s total network is located, the company has a number of ambitious projects in various stages. SANRAL’s investments - which include upgrades, improvements and construction of the R56, R58, N6, R391 – are helping

to drive the development of various SMMEs in the region. In the Eastern Cape, SANRAL announced at the end of 2018 that it would begin a resurfacing project between Grahamstown and Fort Beaufort along the R67. The works cost R226 million and saw just over 70km resurfaced. In November, Deputy President David Mabuza called for all SOEs, including SANRAL, to begin delivering on projects that will alleviate poverty in the country. “The SOEs have made a significant contribution to the economy, social development and poverty reduction in South Africa since 1994. A range of SOEs continue to provide essential economic and socio-economic infrastructure and services in this regard.

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INDUSTRY FOCUS: INFRASTRUCTURE

“They are also playing a key role in enhancing skills, promoting entrepreneurship and opening up opportunities for job creation. We can

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only reduce poverty by generating income through sustainable jobs and business opportunities,” he said. Mabuza was keen to highlight

SANRAL’s impact on the wider economy, especially through the stimulation of SMMEs. “The improvement and expansion of key economic corridors, have substantially improved mobility and in the process, stimulating economic growth in the key production centres and areas with depressed economic potential. “This enables job creation and income generation. A few examples are the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP), the Gateway and Umngeni Interchanges in KZN, the Gauteng-Durban Corridor and the N2 Wild Coast which have been a good training ground for the development of SMMEs from Grades 1 or 2 to Grades 3 to 5. “The SMMEs are put through an intense 24-month training program

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and trained in road construction trades in order to equip and enable them to pursue opportunities in SANRAL’s mainstream national projects or other projects in provinces and municipalities. “SANRAL also has a skills development program that capacitates people across various levels. In high schools, it focuses on providing scholarships in Maths and Science, and in universities and TVET colleges SANRAL gives higher education bursaries in engineering and technical careers. Support is also provided to Universities in postgraduate research,” he said But, despite this success, SANRAL still has serious funding issues to smooth out. In October 2018, Macozoma suggested that the company needed R120 billion to

sustain the country’s road network, and fuel levies were not enough to bridge the gap. It continues to wrestle with e-tolls in Gauteng, and was voted down when it came to introducing e-tolls in Cape Town. “The needs, priorities, engineering principles and spending efficiencies must inform future spending allocations,” he said. Overall, SANRAL’s work is highly valued, highly significant for the future of South Africa, and vital for the continued modernisation of the country’s infrastructure. To date, its performance continues to be strong. “SANRAL only has 4.1% of our infrastructure in poor or very poor condition. International benchmarks are to keep this below 10%,” Macozoma reminded when talking at the opening of the new Mount

Edgecombe intersection. SANRAL is a constant in South Africa, in a market that can so often be uncertain. For more than 20 years, this expert company has tied corners of the country together while paving the way for success for business and individuals. Now, with Macozoma pushing Horizon 2030 and working hard to restore trust, the future does look bright. “As a dynamic organisation which places high value on innovation and modernisation, we embrace the changes and are looking forward to working with new and existing stakeholders on our journey towards Horizon 2030,” Macozoma says.

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MAR CH 2019