President Jacob Zuma has told Ministers, Premiers and Mayors, who are part of the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Commission (PICC), that they must jointly attend to delivery matters with speed and a problem-solving culture.
The commission was established to forge partnerships among government departments across all spheres of government, to ensure that infrastructure investment is rolled out without mindless rules and unnecessary delays.
“The PICC is action oriented, flexible and focused. It must attend to regulatory matters if necessary, so that we make decisions and ensure actual delivery,” he said.
The projects under the PICC – headed by different departments – cover over 150 specific infrastructure interventions in rail, road, ports, dams, irrigation systems, sanitation and electricity.
The President said ever since the commission was established in 2012, it focused its efforts on under-spending. However, it was beginning to make solid progress with improved actual spending across all three spheres of government.
President Zuma said that there were concerns over limited construction activity. The commission now monitors construction every quarter across hundreds of projects.
“Now we are making sure that dams are opened, that new schools are occupied by learners and that railway carriages are manufactured.
“But we recognise that much more needs to be done to strengthen the 21st century economy.
“And of course, health, education and rural infrastructure are all critical to the welfare and productivity of our people,” President Zuma said.
http://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/president-zuma-attend-infrastructure-delivery-urgency
