SA Affordable Housing January - February 2019 // Issue: 74 | Page 28

INDUSTRY MATTERS
Making PPP work for you
In the 1990s the Public Private Partnerships (PPP) model was
considered by the South African Government as one method to
deliver infrastructure projects.
By Ramodise Mekoa, general manager, Dipalopalo FM Solutions at Stats SA
Stadium costs for 2010 were in excess of R35-billion.
S
ince the 1990s there has been a steady growth of PPPs.
Examples of projects financed using the model include
the Gautrain, the Maputo Development Corridor and
the Department of International Relations and Cooperative
Governance (DIRCO) head office in Pretoria, among others.
The effectiveness of PPPs was demonstrated as far back as
1999, with Blue IQ.
Blue IQ (now known as Gauteng Growth and Development
Agency) was founded to roll out a very complicated Strategic
Economic Infrastructure Plan for Gauteng province. At the
time, PPPs were considered still in their infancy. However,
following the endorsement by Treasury of the PPP strategic
framework in 1999, international investment began to look
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promising. The Gautrain Rapid Rail Link, which was
conceived by Blue IQ, has been South Africa’s biggest PPP
estimated at R23-billion, with a successfully operational
transport system that has been functional since 2010, just in
time for the Soccer World Cup.
Interestingly, the greater infrastructure that was built for
the 2010 Soccer World Cup, particularly the stadia which
were built around the country, cost in excess of R35-billion,
a cost which the government carried alone. It was later
found that the construction companies had colluded and
rigged bids to benefit themselves. But would this have
happened if they shared the costs, the risks and what will
hopefully become long term benefits?
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