In the 2023/24 financial year, the South African National Roads Agency SOC Limited (Sanral) reported a total expenditure of R27.1bn, with R4.1bn allocated to toll roads and R23bn to non-toll roads. Of the non-toll road expenditure, R12.3bn was directed towards capital projects, while R10.7bn was spent on maintenance. "The significant investments in both toll and non-toll roads underscore our dedication to enhancing South Africa’s road infrastructure, ensuring safer, more efficient mobility for all," says Reginald Demana, Sanral CEO.

Looking at the financial performance, total assets stood at R772bn, 17% up from the previous year, while both operating activities and investing activities increased by 23% and 7%, respectively.

Demana explained that many targets were not just achieved, but significantly exceeded.

"On an engineering level, we set out to resurface 1.200km of our network but had achieved 1.984km. This is significantly up from 687.9km in the previous year and speaks to a robust commitment to maintenance and management of our assets," Demana says.

Transformation and job creation

While engineering is a core focus, Sanral exceeded its target for work on transformation, job creation, road safety and capacity creation.

Against a target of 75%, the road agency achieved 99.6% on Routine Road Maintenance (RRM) work performed by Black-owned small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs).

The total target for the number of SMMEs participating in agency projects was 1,800. Sanral achieved 2,249, significantly up from 1,928 the previous year.

Sanral had set out to create 12,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs but had achieved 12,652, also up from 11,366 the previous year.

“Looking at the road ahead, Sanral is in solid financial standing, with R87bn allocated by the National Treasury for the next three years.

“Borrowing capacity has increased to R16.5bn, allowing for larger-scale project funding. The acceleration of spending on projects is resulting in reduced cash balances through faster project execution,” the agency said.

Infrastructure development

Demana attributes the achievement to steady operational and strategic growth.

“We are a growing organisation with an increasing network size that currently stands at 24.384 km, plus an additional 3.350 km of roads under assessment for transfer from provincial authorities.

“It has been a challenging year on many fronts, but we have risen to those challenges, guided by our unwavering commitment to infrastructure development that fosters economic growth and drives transformation.

“Sanral’s role in creating opportunities, particularly for Black-owned enterprises, remains central to our mission. As we move forward, we will continue to ensure that our projects contribute meaningfully to job creation, community upliftment, and the economic empowerment of South Africans.

"Our dedication to these developmental outcomes is steadfast, and we will use our investments to catalyse positive change for generations to come," says Demana.

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