Author:nick-poree

Kick start, push start, or non-start November 19, 2024 South Africa’s transport and logistics sector is at a critical juncture. The economy is increasingly reliant on a system that is struggling to function, with Transnet’s highly publicised “recovery plan” promising progress over several years. But will these efforts genuinely revive the country’s failing transport network, or are we merely prolonging the inevitable? In this no-holds-barred column, NICK PORÉE dives into the heart of the crisis, exposing the glaring issues and […]

Road freight breakthroughs needed to realise AfCFTA’s potential November 7, 2024 The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) holds immense promise for unlocking interstate trade across Africa. However, according to NICK PORÉE, infrastructural and logistical challenges – including costly border delays and inefficient port operations – continue to hamper progress. The AfCFTA agreement, signed by 54 of the 55 African Union member countries, encompasses a market of 1.3 billion people with a combined GDP of US$3.4 trillion. The agreement aims […]

Does policy paralysis pay? September 30, 2024 The road freight industry has “growed like Topsy” and is now out of control. Nick PORÉE explains why. The National Transport Policy Study (NTPS) in 1985 finally broke the shackles on the road freight industry, which subsequently mushroomed into the most significant mode of land transport within about 10 years. At the time, the Department of Transport (DoT) had the intention of creating the Road Transport Quality System (RTQS), which would manage the […]

Is the Government of National Utility good GNUs for transport? September 2, 2024 As we now have a Government of National Unity (GNU), NICK PORÉE says it is relevant for the transport and logistics industry to reflect on what might have been – had this national unity included more than just government departments. Nationalisation has for many years been one of the major impediments to the economic performance of the country, with nationalised industries (the state-owned companies) having soaked up […]

Transport lacking motion: Creecy’s crisis point August 26, 2024 What should Barbara Creecy, the new Minister of Transport, be focusing on? NICK PORÉE explains… Transport is all about motion. Policies provide direction, but there is very little evidence of positive corrective policy action in any modes for the past 30-plus years since the deregulation of road freight in 1987, and ossified policies have resulted in the current national logistics crisis. In 2024, South Africa enters a new era of transport […]

An anniversary year… but should we be celebrating? June 27, 2024 There are some notable anniversaries in South Africa this year – but NICK PORÉE cautions that many are no cause for celebration. For South Africa, the year 2024 is, in many ways, an “anniversary year” of landmark events in many aspects of life, policy, and particularly transport. It is also an election year, which makes the anniversaries even more relevant as we contemplate the future. Winston Churchill once said: […]

Corridors or Corridas? May 31, 2024 What do road freight corridors and a Spanish corrida have in common? A lot more than you would think. NICK PORÉE explains… Road freight transport on Southern Africa’s corridors is full of players with conflicting objectives. It is something like the Spanish corrida – with the various authorities as the bulls and drivers as the patient mounts of the picadors, engaging the bull without ability to retaliate. In this case, however, there are a […]

Policy change or a mere shift? April 30, 2024 Can South Africa’s railways be resurrected? NICK PORÉE says the future of the economy depends on it, but points out that policy change is urgently required. Policy: “A set of ideas or plans that is used as a basis for making decisions.” (Collins Dictionary) The current logistics crisis in South Africa is the direct result of government policy over the past 120 years: the policy decision to control and provide transport […]

Transport and logistics: privatisation pioneers April 25, 2024 Private initiative in South Africa has been the driving force in the country’s development, despite government resistance and attempts at control. NICK PORÉE notes that despite all policy pronouncements, privatisation “just happens” when government fails to provide. Privatisation has happened in education, health care, public transport, security, and transport. In fact, transport and logistics in this country have always been driven by the initiative of private pioneers, despite the extensive nationalisation since […]

DTIC policy places transporters at risk March 5, 2024 The Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition is pursuing policies that can have dire consequences for transport operators, warns NICK PORÉE. The Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition (DTIC) – which should be renamed the Department of Trade, Industry, and Non-Competition – has recently published discussion papers on trade policy, localisation, and greening the economy. These papers have many serious implications for the road transport industry. The issues are real and […]