Infrastructure
VISION
South Africa needs to maintain and expand its electricity, water, transport and telecommunications infrastructure in order to support economic growth and social development goals. Given the government's limited finances, private funding will need to be sourced for some of these investments.
The role and effectiveness of sector regulators needs to be reviewed. In addition to issuing licences and setting tariffs, regulators need to place more emphasis on stimulating market competition and promoting affordable access to quality services. This will require capacity-building in regulatory institutions.
Policy planning and decision-making often requires trade-offs between competing national goals. For instance, the need to diversify South Africa's energy mix to include more renewable energy sources, which tend to be variable in terms of production, should be balanced against the need to provide a reliable, more affordable electricity supply.
GOALS
- The proportion of people with access to the electricity grid should rise to at least 90 percent by 2030, with non-grid options available for the rest.
- The country would need an additional 29 000MW of electricity by 2030. About 10 900MW of existing capacity is to be retired, implying new build of more than 40 000MW.
- At least 20 000MW of this capacity should come from renewable sources.
- Ensure that all people have access to clean, potable water and that there is enough water for agriculture and industry, recognising the trade-offs in the use of water.
- Reduce water demand in urban areas to 15 percent below the business-as-usual scenario by 2030.
- The proportion of people who use public transport for regular commutes will expand significantly. By 2030, public transport will be user- friendly, less environmentally damaging, cheaper and integrated or seamless.
- Durban port capacity should increase from 3 million containers a year to 20 million by 2040.
- Competitively priced and widely available broadband.
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