Write@the back
SA does not lack plans but delivery systems
A cting Director General of the Department of Electricity and Energy, Subesh Pillay made the point at the recent CESA Infrastructure Indaba that, “South Africa does not lack plans or budget allocations [to deliver its infrastructure projects], but lacks a delivery system capable of consistently converting these into completed and functioning infrastructure assets”. In his keynote speech at the Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA) Infrastructure Indaba 2026, held in Durban in mid-March, Pillay said, “Despite significant public infrastructure allocations over the medium-term, underspending and delays persist across national departments, state-owned entities and municipalities.” He noted further, “Infrastructure performance is not just lagging; it is structurally constrained. Gross fixed capital formation contracted in 2025, construction output declined, and the pipeline of projects entering the system has weakened.” This systemic delivery gap was starkly quantified by the Auditor General of South Africa’s Deputy Business Unit Leader National, Tintswalo Masia, who revealed 292 material irregularities in national and provincial government for the 2023-24 year. These irregularities stemmed from non-compliance, suspected fraud, and issues like payments for undelivered goods or services, unfair procurement, lost value for money, unrecovered revenue, late payment penalties, and wasteful spending, resulting in R14.3 billion in losses. The AG logged 446 irregularities in local government causing R8.47 billion in losses. Positively, she noted that recovery efforts have yielded R1.3 billion overall (R709.26 million recouped, R244.12 million prevented, R370.24 million pending), highlighting procurement reforms’ potential to turn underspending into assets. Nonetheless, Pillay suggested that infrastructure expansion requires a fundamental reconfiguration of resources, rebuilding an ecosystem of skilled engineers and investments in project preparation capacity, amid global supply chain pressures and long lead times for specialised equipment. He highlighted that projects that form part of the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP 2025) alone would require an estimated generation investment pipeline in the order of R2 trillion to R3 trillion, which would require careful planning and allocation. “Engineers play a central role in project preparation, procurement and asset management, and we need joint accountability between government and the profession to shift from planning to execution,” he stated.
This view was shared by CESA President, Dr Vishal Haripersad, as he urged early integration of engineers into decision-making processes. “Pioneering change requires that engineering insight helps shape strategies, budgets and national priorities,” Haripersad said. In his opening address at the indaba he emphasised that when engineering expertise informs decisions early, infrastructure performs better, lasts longer, and delivers greater value to society. “Infrastructure represents public trust made concrete. When governance fails, when quality is compromised, or when corruption takes root, the consequences are felt not in reports or balance sheets, but in communities and livelihoods. This is why transparency, professional standards, and ethical leadership remain essential to building infrastructure that serves the public good,” Haripersad said. Acknowledging the shortage of some 60 000 professionals in the engineering industry, Haripersad’s insights were echoed in other sessions that amplified these themes. The need for development of young professionals and for mentorship and investment was in focus in the session on ‘Transformation: Advancing an inclusive engineering profession through BBBEE, employment equity targets, and diversity initiatives’ which was facilitated by Sechaba Kou of Isao Consulting. Jabulile Msiza, CESA Vice-President and Director at Jones & Wagener, highlighted mid-career progression bottlenecks in mentoring, registration and retention, noting that consulting engineering firms in some cases advance juniors but stall at senior targets. She added that many engineers in this timeframe have often moved into other sectors or found employment in overseas companies, which further constrains the skills development in South Africa. Ntsoaki Mamashela from the Department of Employment and Labour clarified that sectoral employment equity targets are flexible guidelines, not quotas, to diversify senior levels and seize opportunities. Sekadi Phayane-Shakhane, SAICE CEO, highlighted the low representation of women, despite 65% youth membership, advocating for intentional inclusion, mentorship, and professionalisation as pillars of infrastructure success. Further sessions addressed capacity building to support excellence in professional engineering in public and private sectors, and engineering, procurement, and delivery models for infrastructure. In this session, participants from both public and private sectors shared their insights on how infrastructure ecosystem role players could activate an accountability ecosystem to address the root causes of poor institutional integrity, a lack of accountability and consequence management. CESA CEO Chris Campbell closed the first day of the event highlighting that the country’s infrastructure sector requires bold thinking, strong collaboration and capable institutions to unlock the full potential of infrastructure as a catalyst for economic growth, job creation and social development. “The conversations today speak directly to the role that engineering leadership, policy direction and collaboration must play in shaping infrastructure that supports sustainable economic growth and meaningful development across South Africa,” Campbell said.
From left: CESA CEO Chris Campbell, Acting Director General of the Department of Electricity and Energy, Subesh Pillay, and CESA President, Dr Vishal Haripersad.
For more information visit: www.cesa.co.za
32 Electricity + Control APRIL 2026
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker