PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa calls for a renewed commitment to rebuilding South Africa's infrastructure and construction sector.
He said the work is about more than development, it's about restoring dignity and opportunities for all citizens.
Speaking at the National Construction Summit at the Birchwood Hotel & OR Tambo Conference Centre in Boksburg, Ekurhuleni, on Thursday,13 November, Ramaphosa said the summit is about "building a nation, not just an industry".
"We are gathered to build a country where everyone has access to water, sanitation, and electricity, where no child must swim across a river to reach school, and where communities have roads, classrooms, hospitals, and decent housing," he said.
Ramaphosa described infrastructure as "the engine of economic growth and social transformation, creating jobs and reducing inequality".
He reflected on how decades of apartheid planning and underinvestment left communities without basic services, while post-1994 investments in housing, water, and electricity transformed millions of lives.
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The president highlighted recovery in the construction sector.
According to the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey, employment rose by 248 000 in the third quarter, with construction contributing 130 000 new jobs. More than 250 projects worth R230 billion in energy, transport, water, and digital infrastructure are already transforming communities and laying the foundation for an inclusive economy.
To sustain this momentum, government has committed R1 trillion to infrastructure over the medium term.
Spending is shifting from consumption to investment, with capital payments growing by 7,5%, and measures are being introduced to attract more private sector participation through updated public-private partnership regulations.
Ramaphosa stressed the importance of visible progress.
"We want to see cranes and construction vehicles across cities, townships, and rural areas. When people travel through our country, they must see a nation at work," he said.
Ramaphosa warned that the government will not tolerate construction mafias, cable theft, or vandalism, and endorsed the South African Construction Action Plan, which aims to fast-track projects, track progress in real time, and ensure on-time, on-budget completion.
Speaking at the summit, Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Dean Macpherson said the sector must continue to improve performance and drive growth, noting that more than 170 individuals linked to construction crime had been prosecuted in the past year.
"We need to restore public confidence in the construction sector if we are to turn South Africa into a construction site. In Durban last year we committed to stopping construction stop ages and we have seen green shoots emerging in the construction sector," said Macpherson.
Delegates will also discuss combating site disruptions and improving infrastructure delivery over the next two days.
"Infrastructure is not only about roads and bridges. "It is about hope, opportunity, and a better life for all South Africans," added Ramaphosa.
