Gauteng gets R4.5-billion infrastructure makeover

The Gauteng department of infrastructure development will embark on 340 projects valued at R4.5-billion over the next three years.

Gauteng infrastructure development MEC Jacob Mamabolo made the announcement on Tuesday. He said that R1.7-billion was allocated for projects in the 2018/19 financial year‚ including for schools‚ clinics‚ community centres and other public facilities for the people of Gauteng.

In the 2018/19 financial year‚ six new schools will be built‚ 19 renovations will be done and three upgrades and additions completed. The health department will also be on the receiving end of six new build projects‚ two renovations and two upgrades and additions.

Mamabolo said the projects would be profiled and prioritised to enable the department to manage them efficiently.

“All the identified pipeline projects are classified into three categories‚ with the first known as ‘Platinum’‚ which is a list of 63 projects planned for delivery during the current 2018/19 financial year. The 63 Platinum projects are valued at R459-million.

“They have been vetted against the IDMS (infrastructure delivery management system) guidelines to ensure their delivery period is not delayed or extended. The second category is ‘Silver’‚ consisting of 188 projects which consist of projects planned for delivery during the 2019/20 financial year and estimated allocation of about R966-million. The last classification is ‘Coal’ and consist of 89 projects that are planned for delivery in the 2021/22 financial year and estimated allocation of about R260-million‚” he said.

Mamabolo said the department will improve its monitoring of project performance and ensure that it managed compliance issues that normally fall under the ambit of other spheres of government.

All the construction companies linked to the 63 projects for delivery in this financial year will be brought on board. Unreliable contractors and service providers will be identified and subjected to consequence management before causing delays or unnecessary cost over-runs‚ Mamabolo promised.

Mamabolo said the project delivery efficiency will be achieved through the use of technology to by using one source: the Lutsinga nerve centre.

The centre will enable the department to receive live project management data on daily basis for decision making as well as for ongoing monitoring and evaluation.

“It is for this particular reason that we have introduced the use of drones to monitor and conduct oversight on construction site performance‚ thus reconciling reported data by our officials and real life situation on the ground. We have been piloting the use of drones since early January this year. We are pleased with the results‚” Mamabolo said.

READ MORE: