South Africa, which already faces a heavy bill to upgrade its port, rail and electricity infrastructure, needs R307 billion to repair and improve its sprawling national road system.

The South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) requires design and construction work on 1 437 projects, Transport Minister Barbara Creecy said in a presentation to lawmakers in Cape Town on Tuesday.

Repair work by the company, which manages 4% of the nation’s 750 000km road network, has been dogged by delays caused by challenges ranging from contractors going out of business to extortion by organised crime, Creecy said.

Firms brought in to complete the work when a contractor quit due to demands by criminals have included China Communications Construction Company, she said.

South Africa’s road network is the 11th-longest in the world, while Sanral’s small portion of that carries 70% of the nation’s long-distance freight. The costly outlook reflects similar projections for other state-owned companies.

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