Sidssa 2026: Ramaphosa and Hill-Lewis harmonise on SA’s infrastructure goals

Two major South African political parties, the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the African National Congress (ANC), united at the Sustainable Infrastructure Development Symposium South Africa (Sidssa) 2026 to present a common front to infrastructure investors. Amidst some initial tension during the conference, President Ramaphosa put an end to the division as he addressed attendees via Microsoft Teams.

Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis, took the stage, emphasizing the city's investment in infrastructure, which reached an unprecedented R12.3 billion last financial year, breaking South Africa's record for such investments. However, he noted that the current level of investment is still insufficient to keep up with the rapid urbanization of South Africa.

Hill-Lewis proposed a rule suggesting that every major metro should invest between R10-15 billion annually in infrastructure to counteract rapid growth pressures. He further explained that infrastructure is a diagnostic signal of a city's economic vitality, asserting that well-maintained infrastructure enables economic growth, while poorly-maintained infrastructure indicates stagnation.

President Ramaphosa echoed Hill-Lewis's sentiment, stating that South Africa needs to invest at least 30% of its gross fixed capital formation in infrastructure to match the National Development Plan's envisioned 2030 goals. Ramaphosa also highlighted the importance of streamlining the process of converting plans to projects, projects to investment, and ultimately to construction.

Both leaders agreed that while global and local capital are abundant, the failure to prepare and package projects appropriately is the primary reason hindering their successful implementation. They both emphasized the critical role of local government in infrastructure development, as citizens interact directly with the state at this level.