Multi-Party Charter unveils plan to deliver basic services to all through high-quality infrastructure

3 April 2024

For decades South Africa’s Government has been underspending on infrastructure, neglecting our critical road and rail networks, allowing port facilities to decline and disregarding essential water and sanitation infrastructure. The result of underspending and neglect goes beyond loadshedding to encompass a water system in crisis, a municipal sewerage system crisis, a collapsing rail system and a severely overburdened road network.

This impacts directly on the provision of basic services and cripples Government’s capacity to ensure social wellbeing and economic development. In 2024, there is urgent need for the electorate to remove a failed government and hand the reins to a leadership with the skills, political will and integrity to deliver basic services to all through high-quality infrastructure.

The Multi-Party Charter for South Africa is that leadership. Today the eleven parties in the Multi-Party Charter unveiled a Charter Government’s plan to expand and maintain South Africa critical infrastructure, promoting sustainable water use, safeguarding South Africa’s water treatment plants, strengthening maritime facilities for international trade and economic growth, establishing a well-maintained structured road network, and improving the rail network for enhanced connectivity and efficiency.

The Charter’s specific plans, as discussed in greater detail by the Charter Leaders, include the following –

1. Promote Public-Private-Partnership (PPP’s), working with the private sector to help address infrastructure challenges by leveraging the private sector's financial support, expertise and innovation.

2. Prevent breakdowns and expand the lifespan of infrastructure and equipment by leveraging smart maintenance strategies.

3. Expand access to broadband internet through partnerships with the private sector.

4. Build water-smart cities that are connected with real-time relevant data and information that is shared widely to mitigate water leaks and their response times.

5. Implement an Effect-Based Method (EBM) for water quality testing.

6. Revise water consumption practices for bulk water users like schools, hospitals, laundry facilities, and large-use buildings.

7. Institute smaller-scale water treatment solutions that are applied directly to facilities.

8. Encourage industries to adopt decentralised solutions for water reuse and recycling.

9. Explore the expansion of groundwater extraction.

10. Invest in modernising, upgrading and expanding port infrastructure.

11. Embrace smart infrastructure and digitalisation.

12. Optimise vessel disembarking schedules and cargo handling.

13. Propose a long-term strategy for the management and improvement of the road network. E.g. Introduce asset management standards and plans for preservation, maintenance, and management of transport infrastructure

14. Reintroduce branch rail lines.

15. Transfer responsibility for rail infrastructure to the Ministry of Transport.

16. Devolve rail service management to competent provincial governments and metros.

17. Enhance the protection of the railway network from infrastructure vandalism.

18. Deploy increased CCTV equipment for continuous monitoring and establish a central control centre.

19. Enforce stringent copper theft reduction targets at parastatals.

20. Foster close collaboration and information sharing between law enforcement agencies and metal recyclers.

These commitments have been agreed to by all the signatory parties to the Multi-Party Charter, having consulted with a broad range of experts and capitalizing on the governance experience within the Charter.

We invite the electorate to consider the powerful impact you can make towards efficient service delivery, by installing a Multi-Party Charter Government in the coming election. While the individual parties within the Charter are campaigning on their own merit, with distinct policies, brands and offerings, voters can confidently cast their vote knowing what each party will provide within a Charter Government.

This level of unity and vision is unprecedented in South African politics, and is exactly what our country needs.

Issued by Multi-Party Charter, 3 April 2024