Two South African projects have been chosen in the 100 most innovative and inspiring urban infrastructure projects in the world in the KPMG Global Infrastructure Practice. This is a remarkable feat for the country as sustainable urban infrastructure is one of the greatest challenges of our time and South Africa has stepped up to the plate.

The two projects are the BRICS Cable Project in South Africa and Mauritius and the Durban Waste to Energy Project. Profiles of these projects are now features in the second edition of the Infrastructure 100: World Cities Edition, which was recently released at the World Cities Summit in Singapore. This edition provides insight into the infrastructure projects that make great cities, with a particular focus on the innovations that make them ‘Cities of the Future’ – places where people want to live and do business.

Africa’s projects shone in several categories. KPMG reports that the “BRICS Cable Project, which was also named the overall most innovative project in the Communications Infrastructure category, is a hugely ambitious initiative designed to boost international communication between cities and global access to high-speed internet. As the acronym suggests, this initiative aims to connect the BRICS markets with a 34 000 km, two-fibre pair submarine cable, thus removing BRICS countries’ reliance on telecommunications hubs in the US and Europe. With enhanced internet connectivity, the cable would boost trade links and economic competitiveness.”The Durban Waste to Energy Project in eThekwini was named in the Recycling and Waste Management category. It is a model for the continent as it converts methane gas derived from household waste into electricity on landfills.

Infrastructure has been developed to allow the energy to be transferred into the city’s existing grid, and supplies roughly 5 000 to 6 000 low-income households per day. It will generate income for the eThekwini municipality through both the sale of electricity as well as carbon credits.

Four other projects in Africa also walked away with top honours in the top 100, including the Djibouti Railway in Ethiopia, the Lagos Metro Blue Line in Nigeria, the Queen Mamohato Memorial Hospital in Lesotho and the O3b Networks project being rolled out across the whole continent.According to DeBuys Scott, the director of Global Infrastructure and Projects Group at KPMG in South Africa, “This is a very proud achievement for the African continent.

These projects show that Africa’s time truly has come, and that many of the challenges investors have traditionally associated with the continent are being dealt with. Even more importantly, the challenges are being addressed in cutting edge, innovative ways.”The projects showcased in the Infrastructure 100 are made up of 20 projects selected by judging panels of industry experts from five regions of the world:  Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa. Projects were sorted into 10 project categories, including Urban Mobility, Global Connectivity, Urban Regeneration, Education, Healthcare, Water, New and Extended Cities, Recycling and Waste Management, Urban Energy Infrastructure, and Communications Infrastructure. There were five regional judging panels that assessed submissions on feasibility, social impact, technical and/or financial complexity, innovation and impact on society.

 

 

Source: kpmg.com