The Civil Engineering Contractor June 2019 | Page 39

THOUGHT LEADERS
• T
 hose who require support to
make their existing businesses
sustainable.
“To assist these companies, we need
to look at a database of employees of
traditional construction companies
which are currently in financial
difficulty [Basil Read, Group 5,
Esor, Liviero and more] to identify
those individuals that have more than
15 years‘ work experience to develop
a programme to prepare them to
become mentors for the new players.”
He emphasised that given the
business focus of such a programme,
this would not be led by CETA
itself which would remain in the
background. The inaugural summit
was called to present the five-year
plan, which was aimed at becoming
a dynamic process. The summit will
now be an annual report-back event
to update the industry; measure how
the plan was delivering on its targets;
and how to address bottlenecks which
could emerge.
The summit was split into the six
commissions:
• Enhance technical competence;
• Improve entrepreneurial acumen;
• 
Understand and comply to
technical and business-related
regulations;
• Granting of seed capital to grow
the business;
www.civilsonline.co.za
• D
 evelop and support partnerships
to drive market access
opportunities; and
• 
Leverage professional bodies to
support the growth of SMME and
enhance synergies.
There’s a doctor in the
house
Prior to the presentation of the plan,
the industry perspective on the plan
was given by Dr Thandi Ndlovu, CEO
of Motheo Construction.
“We must move beyond training
to stimulating entrepreneurship,
so we can give opportunities to
those we have trained because
they are able to participate in the
economy. We must not at this stage
in a developing economy focus
too much on skills development,
because over the past 25 years
we have trained lots of people.
Those people are sitting at home
– they’re frustrated, they’ve lost
hope because they do not have
access to opportunity.
“Partnerships with the private
sector will help us to get out of
this training mode and into an
entrepreneurship mode.”
Regarding the demise of several
of South Africa’s big construction
companies, what Ndlovu called ‘the
Big Seven’, she said, “They are either
on the way out or they are struggling,
which decline I must emphasise is
good for business.
“On the other hand, it is good for
you [the SMME] because it presents
you – [provided you are] sound
businesses, properly structured,
well trained, well geared, with a
new way of thinking – to enter into
that space. The old tenants have
to move out and the new tenants
move in. The new tenants are small
businesses. However, you should not
enter this industry thinking you
will become wealthy in the next
10 years – if you do, this is not
the space for you. Construction
is very tough, but it is rewarding.
You have to progress up the CIDB
grade rankings progressively with
experience. Entrepreneurship in the
construction industry is about the
long term.
“The demise of these companies
is due to two things. It is a function
of the economy; but if truth be told,
we took too long as an industry
to transform, and to demonstrate
to government that we are on the
right path towards creating black
businesses. Construction is in a phase
where transformation is at the core –
it is the pillar of what we are trying to
achieve,” added Ndlovu. nn
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