Deputy Chairperson, neither I nor my department have entered into discussions with the authorities of African countries and/or the African Union to secure agreements to deregulate the operations of African airlines in the airspace of African countries. Both state-owned airlines have extensive African route networks. South African Airways operates in 20 African countries, while SA Express operates in six African countries connecting to the domestic and intercontinental network of SAA, which is based at its hub airport, O R Tambo International Airport.
Both SAA and SA Express are licensed by the International Air Licensing Council to operate African routes established by means of bilateral air service agreements negotiated by the Department of Transport and concluded by my colleague, the Minister of Transport, who is promoting the deregulation of inter-African air services. Whilst the Department of Public Enterprises is consulted on these matters, this remains the mandate of the Minister and Department of Transport. As Minister of Public Enterprises I, therefore, have no authority to pursue air service negotiations with other countries. Thank you.
Upgrading of national roads in Mpumalanga and co-operation between provincial and national government in this regard
71. Mr A Watson (DA) asked the Minister of Transport:
(1) (a) What progress has been made with the upgrading of the national roads in Mpumalanga and (b) what is the co-operation between his department and the provincial government of Mpumalanga in this regard; (2) whether he will make a statement on the matter? CO241E
Deputy Chairperson, I thank the hon Watson for the question. The SA National Roads Agency Limited, Sanral, is the agency that reports to the Department of Transport and is responsible for the country's proclaimed national roads.
I have a list of some eight roads that are currently under construction in your province, Mpumalanga. I won't read the whole list but it includes the R37 between Sabie and Nelspruit; the N2 between Camden, Piet Retief and the KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga border; and so on and so forth. We will obviously supply the full list.
There is another list of some six roads where construction has recently been completed. The list includes, amongst other things, some 30 kilometres of the R23 between Volksrust and Perdekop, the R23 between Rietfontein and Greylingstad, and so on. And then there is another list of some 18 programmes where construction is programmed to start in the next 12 to 24 months.
In some cases we are at the design phase, and in other cases we are still at the planning phase. This list includes some 30 kilometres of the R23 from Perdekop to Platrand, etc. We will provide the full list. All of the national roads within the network managed by Sanral have routine road maintenance contracted during the day-to-day actions necessary to keep the roads trafficable.
With regard to 1(b) of the question, the national and provincial governments are jointly responsible for the road network at the national and provincial levels. Sixteen provincial infrastructure plans are in place to assist provinces with managing and maintaining the infrastructure network.
With regard to part 2 of the question, the Minister of Transport is indeed planning a visit to your province, the Mpumalanga province. Arrangements in this regard have been made with the MEC for roads and transport in Mpumalanga, and also with the Mbombela Municipality. Announcements on key projects in Mpumalanga will be made during Minister Ndebele's visit. Thank you, Deputy Chairperson.
Madam Deputy Chairperson, it would be unrealistic of me to ask the Deputy Minister about the number of potholes in these roads, so I'll await the written replies. I thank him for attending to the question so carefully. Thank you, Minister.
Role of department in addressing customs clearance congestion at border- post facilities between South Africa and Mozambique
72. Mr A Watson (DA) asked the Minister of Transport:
Whether his department will play any role in addressing the serious problem of customs clearance congestion at the border-post facilities between Lebombo, South Africa and Ressano Garcia, Mozambique; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details? CO242E
Chairperson, the Department of Transport is represented in the Border Control Operational Co-ordination Committee, BCOCC. It's an interdepartmental structure which is responsible for co- ordinating the activities and plans of various government departments and agencies that are operating at the border crossings.
This particular co-ordinating committee, the BCOCC, is under the leadership of Sars and is responsible for the implementation of a one-stop border post at the Lebombo-Ressano Garcia border post, which you were specifically asking about. The construction work on the South African side will commence in the next three months and will cover, amongst other things, the creation of a truck clearance facility which will be set back approximately eight kilometres outside the border crossing. There will also be a bypass road linking Lebombo to Ressano Garcia.
This will help to expedite the processing of freight trucks. The intention is to complete this phase by or before June 2010.
The Department of Transport is also providing input into the actual design of the border crossing to ensure that sufficient lanes, including fast lanes, are created to separate different types of traffic crossing the border.
The Department of Transport, through the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency, which falls under it, also provides inputs regarding the location of cross-border taxi and bus facilities in and around the border. We understand that the taxi facility is currently located right at the border gate and this contributes to the conflict between passengers and vehicle traffic.
There are a couple of other things we would like to mention. One of them is the rail issue where the Department of Transport, in conjunction with the Mpumalanga provincial government and Shosholoza Meyl, were in discussions to revitalise the Komatipoort rail facility. The aim is to divert at least some of the cross-border passengers as well as cargo traffic onto rail and off the road.
Finally, the Department of Transport is in the process of developing a freight movement optimisation plan for all major border crossings, which includes the Lebombo crossing. The intention is to ensure an unencumbered flow of both passenger and cargo traffic at these border crossings. Thank you.
Chairperson, I would like to thank the Minister for the comprehensive answer.
The whole concept of the one-stop border post was initiated by the MCLI, the Maputo Corridor Logistics Initiative, that was started way back by hon Phosa. I know that they started this initiative because I worked with them quite closely and I want to ask if there is any co-operation between the Minister's department and the MCLI, which is a body that is quite active.
If the Minister is not in contact with them, I would suggest that he does get in touch with them. I say this because this is a very important aspect, not only because of the traffic but also because of the crime that takes place at this border post, as well as drug and human trafficking. We really need action there as a matter of urgency. Thank you.
Chairperson, I cannot answer categorically yes or no. I am sure there is co-operation and I certainly hope so. The point that was raised by the hon member has been noted and I will refer it to my department and particularly the officials involved in this process.
I just want to add that you would have seen that the World Bank, during the course of this week, published an interesting report on infrastructure in Africa. It said that often the infrastructure is not bad, but when it hits border-crossing posts, time saved on building decent infrastructure is consumed in costly, problematic and poorly designed things. This certainly also applies to some of our cross-border areas.
Thank you for that suggestion; I will certainly follow it up.
Applications submitted to SA Bureau of Standards and processing of these applications
73. Mr K A Sinclair (Cope) asked the Minister of Trade and Industry:
How many (a) applications have been submitted to the SA Bureau of Standards, SABS, for approval in the 2008-09 financial year, (b) of these applications have been granted, (c) of these applications will be completed by the end of the 2008-09 financial year and (d) have been carried into the 2009-10 financial year for approval?