Bridging the gap between private industry and government in infrastructure development planning

Abstract

Infrastructure development impacts directly on the economic growth and global competitiveness of a country. It is no secret that South Africa needs to drastically revitalise and expand its transport infrastructure, which is the focus of this paper, to keep up with economic growth and remain regionally competitive. To this end the government and state-owned enterprises have made significant investment commitments and encouraging development plans are being drafted. But infrastructure development, especially as it affects national freight logistics systems, is not a one-sided affair. Communication, consultation and collaboration between private industry and government right from conceptualisation through to implementation are imperative to ensure effective long-term infrastructure development. This, however, is no easy task as both parties have different agendas - and rightly so! This paper discusses current infrastructure development planning and to what degree private industry is engaged in this process in South Africa. It highlights the most commonly cited challenges and reports on some successful initiatives.