Unpacking SA’s ports and logistics crises

The leading event in Africa for supply chain professionals, the 46^th annual SAPICS Conference, was held in Cape Town this month. This year’s event saw more than 750 supply chain managers from 30 countries across Africa and the rest of the world meet to explore this increasingly important profession’s current challenges and opportunities, and to learn and share knowledge.

According to The Professional Body for Supply Chain Management (SAPICS), which has hosted the conference since 1975, supply chain management gained prominence during the Covid-19 pandemic. It is an increasingly important and in-demand profession, says the not-for-profit company, as ongoing volatility – fuelled by geopolitical conflicts, climate crises, and economic instability – impacts global supply chains.

Speaking at the opening of the conference, SAPICS president MJ Schoemaker stated that it is more critical than ever for supply chain managers to share and update their knowledge, as change has become the only constant in the profession. This year, SAPICS presented the conference in association with the Southern African Association of Freight Forwarders (SAAFF). Themed “Supply Chain Metamorphosis” to reflect the changes in today’s dynamic supply chain landscape, the 2024 conference programme featured 128 African and international experts and thought leaders, who shared their insights and expertise with attendees over three days.

In a compelling update on the work of the National Logistics Crisis Committee (NLCC), Ian Bird, senior executive responsible for the transport and logistics focal area at Business for South Africa (B4SA), reported on the operational progress made and results achieved to date by the NLCC. He revealed that the number of trains cancelled on the North Corridor due to security incidents has been reduced by 50%, while the length of the N4 border queue has been cut from 16 to 3km. A 36% reduction in container vessel waiting time at anchor has been achieved, along with a 73% reduction in the number of vessels at anchorage.

Crucial discussion on South Africa’s ports

In a crucial discussion on South Africa’s ports, panellists representing Transnet and business debated the impact of Transnet’s monopoly, non-investment, and the growing imperative for public-private partnerships to upgrade port terminals and back of port solutions, as well as infrastructure like rail.

“Competition breeds efficiency,” stated Oscar Borchards, acting managing executive for the Western Cape Transnet Port Terminals. Along with fellow panellist Brenda Magqwaka, general manager at the office of the commercial executive at Transnet, Borchards revealed that the state-owned enterprise had benchmarked its port terminals against those in Singapore and Thailand.

He told SAPICS Conference delegates that compared to Thailand’s Laem Chabang port, the critical issue to be addressed in South Africa is the “boldness to invest and bring in redundancy”. “Even though Transnet is a monopoly, we realise we cannot go it alone,” Magqwaka added.

Antoinette van Heerden, logistical affairs manager at the Fresh Produce Exporters’ Forum South Africa, stressed that South Africa is competing on fruit exports with South America, where there are large ports, large vessels, and low slot costs. “It is critical to focus on how to get out of the hole we are in quickly, and we need oversight to ensure that we do not end up here again. We must get to the point where we can get our fruit out at the port where we need to get it out. We can rough it for two more years, but after that we need to see service excellence,” she stated.

While supply chains transfer goods from manufacturers to end users, they also save lives. Strong healthcare supply chains are critical to deliver lifesaving medicines and health commodities to where they are needed, when they are needed, including to the most vulnerable communities. Recognising this, the 2024 SAPICS Conference featured a global public health supply chain track running throughout the event. These sessions examined topics ranging from last mile distribution challenges across Africa to the successful use of drones for the delivery of blood, medicines, and snakebite antivenom.

Artificial intelligence’s role in reducing drug shortages by analysing huge volumes of data faster than any human could was also explored, along with the power of public-private partnerships to enhance public health supply chains.