IRR webinar to launch a new report: Reinforcing South Africa’s growth through infrastructure

Event details

Date: Tuesday 1 October 2024

Time: 10h00 - 11h00

Speakers: IRR Researcher Anlu Keeve and IRR Projects and Publications Manager Terence Corrigan

Register to attend: https://streamyard.com/watch/XPE3HSZQjzpr

For many South Africans the deterioration of basic infrastructure is a fact of life. Basic services like turning on a tap and having clean water, flicking a switch and knowing the lights will come on, and driving on well-maintained roads are not a given. Similarly, businesses cannot depend on transporting goods on rail or road and finding both options available and encountering quick and seamless import and export processes. These things are not particularly remarkable and often go unnoticed – until they fail, and for many, failure has been a persistent reality.

This decline is the focus of a new paper from the Institute of Race Relations (IRR), which focuses on the issue of infrastructure.

In order to resolve the problems of service delivery and inadequate infrastructure, we must first understand the scope of the problem. This requires a clear picture of the current state of the country’s infrastructure and identifying which aspects demand immediate attention.

This is the focus of the report which is the fifth in a series of policy-solution papers from the IRR. The IRR’s Blueprint for Growth: Reinforcing South Africa’s growth through infrastructure, will be launched with an online briefing next Tuesday, 1 October.

The report calls for practical reforms in key infrastructure sectors, including water, electricity, rail, roads, and ports, with a strong focus on the need for public-private partnerships.

Anlu Keeve, an IRR Researcher and the author of the report, will join Terence Corrigan, IRR Project Manager, in next week’s briefing for a discussion of the recommendations of the paper.

Keeve says: “That South Africa’s infrastructure stock has declined is clear to see. It affects businesses across the board, especially those that are smaller and lacking the resources to ‘state-proof’ themselves as larger corporates might be able to do. When the avenues available for the movement of goods and people become more expensive, the economic growth potential of the country is inhibited. These are not just dry statistics but has real consequences for people and businesses.”

If South Africa is to reach its potential infrastructure is a vital part of the mix.

Media contact: Anlu Keeve, IRR Researcher Tel: +27 71 929 9516 Email: anlu@irr.org.za

Media enquiries: Michael Morris Tel: 066 302 1968 Email: michael@irr.org.za