It’s been a good year
There was an upturn in community development activity in SANRAL in the 2017/18 financial year – in terms of the number of projects in progress, value of work completed, SMMEs contracted and work opportunities created.
A total of 29 community development projects were under way in various provinces. The combined expenditure was R341m, which was 22% higher than in the previous year. Nine projects were completed, while eight new projects, valued at about R224m, commenced.
Community development projects generally involve local roads in communities situated close to the national road network, where the lives of residents may be affected. Typically, these projects involve the construction of cement pedestrian walkways, the surfacing of gravel roads, improvement of culverts, installation of kerbs and lighting, the erection of pedestrian bridges, the improvement of intersections and the addition of transport laybys and bus stops. In short, they contribute to a safer and more people-friendly road environment.
They also create local business opportunities and offer temporary jobs and skills training. Important features of the programme are:
- Close liaison with community representatives to secure local input and support for projects
- The employment of local residents and the prioritisation of women and young people as sections of the population most severely affected by unemployment
- Training of individuals employed on projects, both formally and through on-the-job skilling
- Contracting of SMMEs and building the supervisory and technical skills of managers of these companies
- Local sourcing of materials and services, wherever possible, in order to inject additional cash into the local economy
In 2017/18, half of SANRAL’s community development projects were in the Eastern Cape, where infrastructure is underdeveloped and poverty levels are among the highest in the country. Community development projects benefited a total of 163 SMMEs, nearly triple the number in 2016/17, and 91% of these were black-owned The programme generated 1 750 work opportunities, equivalent to 526 full-time jobs. This was a substantial increase from the previous year, when the comparative figures were 1 063 work opportunities and 373 full-time job equivalents. However, the average amount earned per job opportunity was 29% lower than in the previous year.
“SANRAL strives to ensure that workers gain skills during their limited period of work on projects so that their future job prospects are improved.”
Training and skills building
SANRAL strives to ensure that workers gain skills during their limited period of work on projects so that their future job prospects are improved.
A total of 674 workers on community development projects received training during 2017/18 and the total spending on training (R12.1m) was double the previous year’s spending.
Trainees learn the ropes on the N2
There is no better classroom for a trainee engineer than a rough and dusty construction site, teeming with roaring machinery and construction staff hard at work.
Thabiso Dladla and Sumay Maharaj are assistant resident engineers (AREs). They’re learning the ropes from seasoned colleagues on the site of the N2 upgrade between Mthunzini and eMpangeni on the KwaZulu-Natal north coast.
“We carry out pretty much the same functions as the AREs. We do the inspections, we do quantities, we do assistant instructions, site instructions and we answer any engineering queries that we get from the contractor. We basically do what the ARE does,” says Dladla.
Maharaj, who started on the project in August 2016, and was previously doing pavement and geometric design in Port Elizabeth at SANRAL’s Technical Excellence Academy (TEA), says he has already learnt many vital lessons since moving north. “I’ve learnt the complex nature of civil engineering and how everything comes together to make things work.”
Thabiso got involved in the project about 10 months after he joined SANRAL’s trainee programme. “I’ve been involved in inspections and assisting the contractor where they need clarification on drawings. When it comes to earthworks, we also do inspections on the fill materials and sub-grade. Recently we’ve started doing the asphalting work, so we do
inspections of all the work carried out by the contractor,” he says.
“I think the main thing is that the design office works differently to the construction site. Sometimes there’s a
breakdown in information, especially with drawings – incomplete drawings and things like that.
That’s why it’s essential for engineering staff to be onsite to answer all these questions.”
