A Review of Highway Agencies in the South Asia Region

A Review of Highway Agencies in the South Asia Region
during the past years. These have, without exception, confirmed SANRAL’s clean reputation.
Over the course of time, performance in terms of the integrity of governance practice has
improved. To achieve this, internal controls at all levels and compliance with legislation and
relevant standards has been actively pursued and promoted.
C1.4 Human Resource Management, Knowledge Development and Research
SANRAL has some 180 employees and has put in place a number of initiatives to support
their development in view of its own tasks.
It is worth noting that SANRAL was recognized as one of the best employers in South
Africa in 2009-10. Quoted reasons for this success are the attention to the development
and training of its employees as well as its HIV/AIDS campaign. Moreover, SANRAL aims to
achieve equality within the company by hiring both black and white employees, men and
women, and offering positions for physically challenged persons.
SANRAL supports the development of its staff as well as potential future staff. Staff
is encouraged to develop skills in fields related to SANRAL’s activities, for example,
community and economic development, project management, marketing and
communication, and general administration. Yearly training programs are being provided
based on a continuous assessment of training needs.
SANRAL has built partnerships with the Gordon Institute of Business Science, the University
of Stellenbosch and the Engineering Council of South Africa to provide training programs to
management staff, tailored to SANRAL’s needs. Some 10 percent of staff can attend yearly
training courses.
Also SANRAL developed a Construction Management Program for all SANRAL employees
who are involved in the management of construction delivery. This prestigious program is
a collaborative effort between the Universities of Stellenbosch, Witwatersrand, Cape Town
and Pretoria. Every year SANRAL appoints a number of project engineers/managers to
attend the program.
Furthermore, SANRAL grants bursaries for private study to staff who indicate an interest in
further study. In recent years, more that 50 percent of the total of 180 staff attended annual
training sessions. Training areas included engineering, financial management, employee
relations, human resources management tools, environmental assessment, computer
training, occupational safety, and motivational skills.
Finally, financial support can be offered to students, provided these studies are relevant to
the agency. Examples of such studies are civil, electronic, and transport engineering.
Based on the 2009 annual report, SANRAL spent some R 2.8 million on internal staff training
courses.
Research and Knowledge Development
SANRAL runs a road infrastructure research program that aims to improve efficiency in road
design and delivery. The focus is on developing economically favorable road techniques,
including the development of performance-related design systems and improved building
materials, but social science studies are also funded, for example, research on the current
practice in HIV/AIDS education and training on SANRAL projects.
SANRAL ensures that sustainable long-term research funding is available through its
own funds and through partnerships with other road authorities and the industry. An
advisory committee on road infrastructure research has been established to provide
strategic direction and input on the best use of limited research funding, and for enhanced
communication between industry participants. SANRAL will continue to fund various
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