South Africa's construction sector sees historic job surge

Source: Pexels.

“While South Africa’s official unemployment rate remains stubbornly high, I am encouraged that the construction sector is starting to play its role to meaningfully provide jobs and opportunities for South Africans across the country.

"With the reforms we are implementing with the South African Construction Action Plan (Sacap), both nationally and provincially, and the R14bn worth of projects being designed, planned and constructed across the country, I have no doubt that the industry will contribute even more towards job creation in the weeks and months ahead,” Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson said.

“After many years in which the construction industry has struggled and experienced subdued state investment, it is very encouraging to see this trend beginning to turn around.” Minister Macpherson said the Sacap, adopted at a recent special meeting with Members of the Executive Council from all nine provinces, will drive further growth in the construction sector as more projects are completed on time and within budget.

The six key interventions of the plan include:

• Introducing accountability, including restriction committees and black-listing defaulting contractors.
• The possible ring-fencing of project budgets and ensuring cash flow to construction projects.
• Digitised integrated project/asset-information tracking through real-time dashboards across national and provincial public works departments.
• Procurement reform, including the establishment of “Procurement War Rooms” and real-time monitoring of major tenders.
• Strengthening audit outcomes and governance by working closely with the Auditor-General of South Africa to address irregularities in real time.
• Professionalising the built-environment in the public sector by requiring registration of built-environment professionals, strengthening ethics and competence.

“As we work to implement these reforms provincially and nationally, I have no doubt that we will further see infrastructure investment, construction-sector growth and job creation across South Africa.

“The work now lies ahead to expedite these reforms as quickly as possible and turbocharge the construction sector, enabling us to make an impact in communities across the country as South Africans see more cranes in the sky and shovels in the ground,” Minister Macpherson said.