Question No. 607
Ms CMP Kotsi (Congress of the People) to ask the Minister of Public Enterprises:
Whether there have been any inter-ministerial resolutions in support of the new growth plan to address the problem of an unreliable and expensive rail and ports system; if not, why not; if so, what (a) agreements are in place to achieve a more desirable outcome, (b) timeframes have been agreed to and (c) hurdles remain?
Reply:
There have been no explicit inter-ministerial resolutions between the Minister of Public Enterprises and any other minister in respect of the "new growth plan".
(a) The Minister of Public Enterprises and the Minister of Transport are currently engaged in an inter-ministerial bi-lateral to pro-actively address policy issues for the future of ports and rail. In addition, the Minister of Public Enterprises, as a shareholder representative, has entered into a shareholder compact with Transnet which focuses on achieving operational improvements.
A range of operational key performance indicators (KPIs) have been included and target improving reliability and performance of rail and port services. KPIs, which limit price increases to levels below inflation in areas where there is no price regulation, have also been included. The ports regulator, established as part of the National Ports Act, is responsible for approval of port related charges of the National Ports Authority (a division of Transnet).
(b) The timeframe for improvements as contained in the shareholder compact is from 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011.
(c) Improving operations, reliability and ensuring market related pricing remain ongoing challenges. Transnet has committed itself during the 2010/11 financial year to achieving a "quantum leap" in operational performance.
This is included as part of its five year corporate plan provided to the Department of Public Enterprises and National Treasury.
Issued by: Department of Public Enterprises
5 March 2010
Source: Department of Public Enterprises (http://www.dpe.gov.za)
