Latest news with #DeanMacpherson
TimesLIVE
2 days ago
- Business
- TimesLIVE
SA ‘becoming a construction site' as sector adds 55,000 jobs year-on-year
Public works and infrastructure minister Dean Macpherson says South Africa is 'becoming a construction site' as the industry continues to create thousands of jobs despite the rising unemployment rate. 'The construction sector added 20,000 jobs in the second quarter and 55,000 jobs year-on-year — a 4.6% increase. This is proof that we are turbocharging the construction sector that drives jobs and growth in South Africa,' Macpherson said. He made the remarks on an X post after the release of Stats SA's quarterly labour force survey (QLFS) for the second quarter of 2025, which showed mixed results across industries. According to Stats SA, the number of people employed in the formal sector increased by 34,000 in Q2 and the informal sector employment decreased by 19,000 over the same period. The largest industry increases in employment were recorded in:
IOL News
2 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
Infrastructure delays cost R444. 7 million, reveals Minister Macpherson
Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson says his department has instituted firm measures to hold non-performing contractors accountable. Image: Henk Kruger / Independent Newspapers Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson has revealed that 57 infrastructure projects have incurred delays, leading to total cost overruns of R444.7 million over the past three years. The overruns are broken down as follows: R110.8 million in 2022/23, R64.3 million in 2023/24, and R269.6 million in 2024/25. This emerged when he was responding to parliamentary questions asked by EFF MP Sharon Letlape, who asked about the actions the department has taken to hold the contractors and implementing agents accountable, among other things. According to Macpherson, his department has instituted firm measures to hold non-performing contractors accountable. 'The defaulting contractors have been terminated or are in the process of being restricted, and legal letters of demand have been issued.' Contractors have had their contracts terminated for non-performance, and he named at least six. Legal proceedings have also been initiated against multiple service providers, including five he mentioned. 'These cases are currently with legal services and the Office of the State Attorney for recovery of financial damages,' he said. Macpherson said there was also blacklisting or recommendations for blacklisting of affected contractors. However, no implementing agent was directly responsible for the majority of project delays except for the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) in two instances. Macpherson said two contractors appointed under DBSA were terminated due to non-payment. The minister said the department has introduced several interventions to strengthen infrastructure delivery and avoid recurrence of inefficiencies. These included the establishment of internal units designed to professionalise and centralise oversight over planning and execution of infrastructure programmes, and a contractor development programme geared to improving the skills and capacity of emerging contractors to meet delivery standards. There is also a dedicated panel of pre-approved contractors that was being established to enable swift appointment where poor performance or termination occurs. Also in place were improved legal action and recovery processes. Macpherson also said stronger collaboration between legal services and the State Attorney was now yielding a pipeline of recovery litigation and summonses against defaulting contractors. The minister further said 38 construction projects had been delayed or halted in the past five years. 'The department is monitoring key construction projects that have experienced delays or have been halted. Notable examples include the Mamelodi Magistrate's Court, the Sarah Baartman Centre of Remembrance, and the Queenstown (Komani) police station.' He cited underperformance by certain contractors, which prompted the department to take corrective action, as the primary reasons for the delays.
IOL News
2 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
Minister Macpherson reveals R444. 7m lost in infrastructure project delays
Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson says his department has instituted firm measures to hold non-performing contractors accountable. Image: File Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson has disclosed that 57 infrastructure projects experienced delays with total overruns to the tune of R444.7 million over the last three years. Macpherson detailed the breakdown of the overruns, which included R110.8m in 2022/23, R64.3m in 2023/24 and R269.6m in 2024/25. This emerged when he was responding to parliamentary questions asked by EFF MP Sharon Letlape, who asked about the actions the department has taken to hold the contractors and implementing agents accountable, among other things. According to Macpherson, his department has instituted firm measures to hold non-performing contractors accountable. Video Player is loading. 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Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading 'The defaulting contractors have been terminated or are in the process of being restricted, and legal letters of demand have been issued.' Contractors have had their contracts terminated for non-performance, and he named at least six. Legal proceedings have also been initiated against multiple service providers, including five he mentioned. 'These cases are currently with legal services and the Office of the State Attorney for recovery of financial damages,' he said. Macpherson said there was also blacklisting or recommendations for blacklisting of affected contractors. 'It is important to note that in some cases, delays were due to client departments failing to decant facilities or confirm budgets, and in certain cases, additional scope and unforeseeable conditions impacted delivery timelines.' However, no implementing agent was directly responsible for the majority of project delays except for the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) in two instances. Macpherson said two contractors appointed under DBSA were terminated due to non-payment. 'Recovery processes against DBSA for delays and financial damages are being prepared.' The minister said the department has introduced several interventions to strengthen infrastructure delivery and avoid recurrence of inefficiencies. These included the establishment of internal units designed to professionalise and centralise oversight over planning and execution of infrastructure programmes, and a contractor development programme geared to improving the skills and capacity of emerging contractors to meet delivery standards. There is also a dedicated panel of pre-approved contractors that was being established to enable swift appointment where poor performance or termination occurs. Also in place were improved legal action and recovery processes. Macpherson also said stronger collaboration between legal services and the State Attorney was now yielding a pipeline of recovery litigation and summonses against defaulting contractors. The minister further said 38 construction projects had been delayed or halted in the past five years. 'The department is monitoring key construction projects that have experienced delays or have been halted. Notable examples include the Mamelodi Magistrate's Court, the Sarah Baartman Centre of Remembrance, and the Queenstown (Komani) police station.' He cited underperformance by certain contractors, which prompted the department to take corrective action, as the primary reasons for the delays. 'In instances where contractors failed to meet their contractual obligations, contracts were terminated in accordance with provisions of the contract,' Macpherson said. Asked about measures his department has implemented to ensure that infrastructure projects were completed within agreed timelines, adhered to allocated budgets, and complied with established quality standards, Macpherson said they have implemented a suite of integrated controls that were aligned to the Infrastructure Delivery Management System, as well as promoted timely, cost-effective, and quality-assured infrastructure delivery. 'The department has instituted firm planning and monitoring mechanisms to prevent schedule overruns, including the enforcement of design-stage timelines through clear annual targets and timely approval of project definition reports and sketch plans,' he said, among other things. Macpherson also said project managers and consultants were held accountable for effective scope management and avoidance of unjustified variation orders. Internal controls have been strengthened to mitigate cost escalations linked to design deficiencies or poor planning. 'These measures are underpinned by routine project review meetings, monthly performance tracking, and robust consequence management to ensure accountability across the infrastructure value chain.'
IOL News
3 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
R779 million spent on private security for state-owned properties over last five years
Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson says there are 318 properties that are currently protected by private security companies. Image: Henk Kruger / Independent Newspapers Taxpayers have paid R779 million over the past five years to provide private security at state-owned properties across the country. This was disclosed by Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson when he was responding to parliamentary questions posed by DA MP Edwin Bath. Macpherson said the expenditure on private security contracts was R140.9m in 2020/21, R124.6m the following year, R144.8m in 2022/23, R161.7m two years ago, and R199.9 in 2024/25. He also said the department has a total of 318 properties that are currently protected by private security companies. 'This is a constantly changing number due to properties that get vacated by tenants and thus require security services to prevent and respond to threats of illegal occupation. This number includes occupied and unoccupied properties located in various regions.' Macpherson further said there was a total of 248 security contracts in place. The top 10 costly private security contracts signed by the department are worth R81m and cover periods ranging from 24 to 36 months. He said none of the listed contracts exceeded the original contract value. 'The department works hard to ensure that security contracts remain within the awarded value.' Macpherson also said the anticipated implications on the continued protection of state-owned properties currently secured through private security contracts remain uncertain, as the proposed regulations by the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority are yet to be finalised. 'Once these regulations are finalised, the department will align its procurement documentation for private security contracts to ensure compliance with the amended regulatory framework,' he said. Macpherson said the department has a total of 10,458 unutilised state-owned properties. 'This does not mean that each one can house a government organisation. They could be derelict, condemned, or unfit for human habitation.' He was responding to ATM leader Vuyo Zungula, who asked the reason for the justification for the government's use of private properties. Macpherson said the default position was to provide state-owned accommodation, but his department found itself relying more on private-leased accommodation because state-owned assets were not conducive to occupation. The department has spent R5.5 billion on private leases and R2.8 billion on maintenance during the 2024/25 financial year. He said the department has adopted asset optimisation strategies that sought to prioritise the development, refurbishment, and repurposing of state-owned properties to reduce the size of private leased properties. 'The minister has tightened controls on how and when leases are required as well as taking action against officials who collude to award leases that are needed,' said Macpherson, adding that he has referred the top 10 leases by value to the Special Investigating Unit for investigation to understand whether they were awarded correctly and if there was value for money. Asked by EF MP Blose Mazwikayise about unoccupied state properties, Macpherson said there were currently 1,743 that remained unoccupied and considered by his department as being under-utilised. 'Properties have been identified by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) and submitted to the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) for analysis, including evaluation to determine suitability for student accommodation as per geographical needs and budget availability. 'This information is being awaited from DHET. On receipt of the above, DPWI will determine the most appropriate implementation model aligned to its asset optimisation strategy to support student accommodation requirements,' he said. [email protected]
News24
7 days ago
- Politics
- News24
Cops shot, prisoner escapes; Cachalia admits to SAPS crisis: Today's Top 7 stories in 7 minutes
News24 brings you the top 7 stories of the day. News24 brings you the top stories of the day, summarised into neat little packages. Read through quickly or listen to the articles via our customised text-to-speech feature. IDT website 'Tactics of defamation': Malaka family trust defends suspended IDT CEO - The Malaka Family Trust defends suspended IDT CEO Tebogo Malaka, claiming her spokesperson, not her, offered a bribe to journalist Pieter-Louis Myburgh. - The Trust alleges Malaka is a victim of a political setup due to her refusal to submit to political pressure and clashes with Minister Dean Macpherson. - The Trust demands the release of unedited video footage and an independent inquiry into political interference and media collusion. Mlungisi Louw/Gallo Images/Volksblad Don't let 'mere technicality' allow Cholota and 89 others to walk free, NPA tells ConCourt - The Constitutional Court will hear the NPA's appeal to limit the impact of a ruling that only the justice minister can request extradition, potentially affecting thousands of cases. - This follows Ace Magashule's former PA, Moroadi Cholota, successfully challenging her extradition from the US based on this ruling, leading to her release in the asbestos tender case. - The NPA argues that if the ruling is fully retroactive, it could allow numerous extradited individuals, including those accused of serious crimes, to have their convictions overturned. Markram leads fresh-faced Proteas into new T20 era: 'They are just explosive and fearless' - The Proteas are starting their journey to the 2026 T20 World Cup with a three-match series against Australia. - Captain Aiden Markram wants the team to play entertaining cricket and allow new players to play freely. - Markram says the younger players bring explosiveness and energy to the team. Gauteng cops gunned down, prisoner escapes in brazen attack - Two police officers were shot and killed in Roodepoort while transporting a prisoner. - The prisoner, Jabulani Moyo, escaped during the ambush. - The officers' firearms were also stolen. 'So many memories': SA's second oldest Spur to close after 56 years - Seven Spur, the second-oldest Spur Steak Ranch in South Africa located in Sea Point since 1968, will close in mid-August due to the landlord's decision to redevelop the property. - Spur Corporation expresses gratitude to its patrons and commits to finding an alternative location in Sea Point to maintain its presence in the community. - The closure marks the end of an era filled with cherished memories for generations of families, as Seven Spur played a significant role in their lives. Fani Mahuntsi/Gallo Images INTERVIEW | New police minister sounds alarm on SAPS - Police Minister Firoz Cachalia acknowledges a crisis in policing, citing a low conviction rate, high murder rate, public distrust, and potential criminal infiltration. - Cachalia aims to address structural and behavioral problems within the SAPS, focusing on professionalising the service, strengthening Crime Intelligence, and improving resource allocation. - He plans to consult widely, learn from past mistakes, and await the recommendations of the commission of inquiry before making significant personnel changes, while also prioritising procurement reform.
