Identifying weaknesses Construction mafia The violent disruption of construction sites is one of the biggest threats to economic activity. A so-called ‘construction mafia’ has been plaguing the industry for some years, with syndicates disrupting projects and causing damage worth billions of rand. These armed groups visit construction sites and demand a share of work. In January 2020, estimated losses owing to the disruption of construction projects amounted to R40.70-billion (IOL, 2021). Criminality is affecting not only the construction industry, but is also weighing on the electricity sector with serious allegations of sabotage of power group Eskom’s infrastructure, as well as in the rail industry with unprecedented theft of cables. Eskom believes the recent collapse of a distribution-line tower at its Lethabo power station, in the Free State, is a “deliberate act of sabotage” (Engineering News, 2021a). The theft of overhead cables and vandalism of freight utility Transnet’s property continues to be on a steep increase. From January to October 2021, Transnet Freight Rail lost more than 1 000 km of copper cable, while an average of 600 theft and vandalism incidents a month were recorded (Engineering News, 2021b). The criminal activity is a serious constraint on the economy and left unaddressed, will curtail South Africa’s growth prospects (BER, 2021). Construction projects are also disrupted when there is limited community involvement and support. The Mtentu bridge project, in the Eastern Cape, is but one example of a megaproject that has suffered severe delays owing to community protest. The former contractors, a joint venture of Strabag and Aveng, terminated their contract with the South African National Roads Agency Limited in early 2019, stalling the Mtentu project. At the time of writing, a new contractor was yet to be appointed (Engineering News, 2021c). A concerted effort is needed to ensure proper community engagement and redress to prevent the project disruptions. Investment in local skills transfer and training of local emerging contractors will enable communities to benefit more from infrastructure projects. The South African Forum of Civil Engineering Contractors (Safcec) believes “throwing the book of law at disruptors is not enough, so too must a book of opportunities be handed to them” (Webster, 2021). Safcec argues that thugs must be isolated
“. . . criminal activity is a serious constraint on the economy and left unaddressed, will curtail South Africa’s growth prospects.”
from genuine grievances of communities and community-based entities that feel excluded from participation in local economic activities. Some business forums in the construction sector, whose members were in the past accused of violent disruptions, have transformed themselves and have started to undertake legitimate business activity.
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