Technology and data have helped government improve the efficiency of delivering massive infrastructure projects such as the building of schools and hospitals. This was a statement made by Jacob Mamabolo, Gauteng’s MEC for Infrastructure Development at the first United Nations Data Forum, currently underway in Cape Town.

Speaking during the opening plenary Mamabolo said:  “We are sharp-bending the infrastructure delivery pipeline. We have made remarkable progress in leveraging, harnessing and applying smart technologies and systems, with business intelligence capabilities to deliver and drive infrastructure development.”

He said South Africa’s development blueprint, the National Development Plan, identified infrastructure as the key driver of economic growth, job creation and the primary tool to change the spatial landscape inherited from apartheid.

As the leading economic hub of the country, Gauteng is under immense pressure to deliver high quality infrastructure for its residents.

Lutsinga Infrastructure House

The Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development (GDID) had been invited to attend the global forum following the launch of its state-of-the-art electronic monitoring hub for government infrastructure delivery named Lutsinga Infrastructure House. It was invited to showcase the work and operations of this project nerve centre that was established May 2016.

Described as part of the “data revolution” by Statistician General Dr Pali Lehohla, Lutsinga Infrastructure House uses technology to track spending and project milestones to ensure that public infrastructure is delivered on time, at the correct quality and within budget.

“It is a room integrating five of our core data management systems generating critical business intelligence that allows for a data-centric, insight-driven proactive approach to Project Management,” Mamabolo told delegates. “Centralised dashboards display critical data aggregated from all our operations and has automated our infrastructure delivery core process in the province,” he added.

The project’s nerve centre houses the following systems:

• The Immovable Asset Register including properties and land parcels that are critical for all our build and construction projects.
• A Construction and Built Project Management Dashboard
• The Expanded Public Works Programme Dashboard
• The E-maintenance Dashboard
• An Infrastructure Monitor that measures and reports on the socio-economic impact of the Department’s work .

“Lutsinga Infrastructure House brought about a radical turnaround in the institutional and organisational culture relating to project management at GDID,” the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development said in a statement.

“We needed to ensure that our managers change their reporting habits and that they are accountable. We needed to bring transparency and visibility to the management environment and build our capacity to fight and root out corruption,” Mamabolo said.