REGULARS: QUALITY INSIGHT
Sustainability in the
SA context
South Africa remains a developing nation with a growth agenda – a
ripe time for accelerating the country’s sustainable infrastructure.
By Dr Urishanie Govender, chief executive officer of UNISAM Environmental
South Africa has the opportunity to pave the way for an inclusive sustainable economy of scale.
S
ustainable infrastructure and
responsible design seeks to balance
all social, economic and
environmental issues. The planning, design
and construction of sustainable
infrastructure is of vital importance for
South Africa to connect and grow as
a nation.
Public and private sector leaders, as well
as sustainability practitioners, have a vital
role to play to ensure that sustainable
development principles are defined at
organisation and project level; effective
practices are agreed and that performance
towards sustainable development is
monitored and improved.
28
OCTOBER 2018
CLADDING // CONCRETE // INSULATION // STEEL // THATCH // TIMBER // TRANSLUCENT // WATERPROOFING // COMPONENTS
Investment in infrastructure of the country
is prioritised towards the construction of
ports, roads, railway systems, electricity
plants, hospitals, schools and dams.
Between 1998/1999 and 2016/2017,
Treasury reported that the public sector
spent more than R2.7-trillion on
infrastructure. The amount spent increased
from R48-billion in 1998/1999 to
R249.9-billion in 2016/2017, resulting in an
average annual increase of 5.2% after
discounting inflation. State-owned
companies have been the biggest
contributors to public sector expenditure
over this period, spending R1.2-trillion
in total.
Municipalities and provincial departments
have also increased their infrastructure
spending, contributing R554-billion and
R643-billion respectively to build schools,
hospitals, clinics and other community-
related infrastructure. Most of the projects
are publicly funded, while a few, like the
Renewable Energy Independent Power
Producer Procurement Programme, are
funded by the private sector. This signals
an increase in infrastructure spend in
South Africa.
The South African government adopted a
National Infrastructure Plan (NIP) in 2012 to
drive sustainability practices into
infrastructure projects. The NIP also aimed
to transform the South African economic
landscape while simultaneously creating
significant social and environmental
benefits, for example, increased job
opportunities and greening the economy.
In line with this plan, the 2018 budget
prioritised spending on social and
economic infrastructure such as schools,
health facilities, roads and transport,
energy and water and sanitation.
It also continues to fund programmes to
improve the quality of infrastructure
spending, and the capacity of government
to plan and implement capital projects. The
NIP also recognises that sustainable
infrastructure design includes the
rehabilitation, reuse and optimisation of
existing infrastructure.
Legislation promoting
sustainable development
Parallel to advancing the development of
our infrastructure, South Africa is also
responding to the sustainable development
agenda through regulatory changes. These
are evident in the country’s adoption of a