Emerging black-owned companies have called for the maritime industry to be separately governed as they believe it is a neglected sector.

The maritime sector is under the Department of Transport, which also manages the aviation, logistics and rail sectors.

“The sector is big and the Department of Transport has too much in its hands,” said Mxolisi Zwane, head of policy at the Black Business Council.

Speaking on the sidelines of the South African Maritime Industry Conference in Cape Town, Zwane said many job opportunities could be created if the marine sector was properly regulated.

Shipping, which makes up a large part of South Africa’s trade, is hampered by the fact that the country  does not own a single shipping vessel. It currently uses ships registered to other countries, which is business that could go to local companies instead.

Xolani Mkhwanazi, president of the South African Chamber of Mines, said even if the mining conglomerates had offices in South Africa, the fact remained that there are no South African-owned shipping companies.

“We export about 130 million tonnes of cargo per year and unfortunately all of them are exported on non-South African registered vessels,” said Mkhwanazi.

“There is a need to make sure that the costs at our ports are reasonable and that there is greater efficiency so that the country is able to compete with the rest of the world,” said Ben Martins, minister of transport. Work on the maritime policy will be completed by the end of the year, he said.