The South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) says its 2023/24 financial year was characterised by resilience and agility, to conclude with a strong financial performance, an unqualified audit report and accelerated investment in road infrastructure.

The total spend on toll roads came in at R4.1-billion, while expenditure on non-toll roads came in at R23-billion, of which R12.3-billion was spent on capital projects and R10.7-billion on maintenance.

“The significant investments in both toll and non-toll roads underscore our dedication to enhancing South Africa's road infrastructure, ensuring safer, more efficient mobility for all,” Sanral CEO Reginald Demana highlights.

In terms of the financial performance, total assets stood at R772-billion, 17% up from the previous year, while both operating activities and investing activities increased by 23% and 7% respectively.

Demana says many targets were significantly exceeded.

“On an engineering level, we set out to resurface 1 200 km of our network but had in fact achieved 1 984 km. This is significantly up from 687.9 km the previous year and speaks to a robust commitment to maintenance and management of our asset.

Against a target of 75%, Sanral achieved 99.6% on routine road maintenance (RRM) work performed by black-owned small, medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs).

Sanral achieved 2 249 SMMEs participating it its project, up from 1 928 the previous year, and above its target of 1 800.

Sanral had set out to create 12 000 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs, and achieved 12 652, also up from 11 366 the previous year.

Sanral says it is on a solid financial standing with R87-billion allocated by the National Treasury for the next three years.

Borrowing capacity has increased to R16.5-billion, allowing for larger-scale project funding.

The acceleration of spending on projects is resulting in reduced cash balances through faster project execution, the entity points out.

Demana attributes the achievement to steady operational and strategic growth.

“We are a growing organisation with an increasing network size that currently stands at 24 384 km, plus an additional 3 350 km of roads under assessment for transfer from provincial authorities.

"It has been a challenging year on many fronts, but we have risen to those challenges, guided by our unwavering commitment to infrastructure development that fosters economic growth and drives transformation.

“Sanral’s role in creating opportunities, particularly for Black-owned enterprises, remains central to our mission. As we move forward, we will continue to ensure our projects contribute meaningfully to job creation, community upliftment and the economic empowerment of South Africans,” Demana outlines.