JRA commits to women empowerment

Manche was speaking at an event where Johannesburg Mayor Parks Tau launched the 2015/16 Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) Flagship Bridge programme as part of the “2014 SOCA” R110 Billion Infrastructure Programme.

Tau said they were launching a R152-million programme geared towards the reconstruction and restoration of critical freeways, roads and bridges in the city. “This infrastructural investment is an essential part of the broader commitment the City has made to allocate R110-billion in upgrading our infrastructure over a 10-year period, ensuring that our world-class African city has world-class physical infrastructure that will enable future economic growth and development,” Tau said.

He said the City investigated the state and quality of 814 bridges which have a combined asset value of R15-billion. “Our assessment [led us to] conclude that many of these bridges require extensive restoration in order to bring safety and structural features in line with modern engineering trends,” Tau said.

Meanwhile, Manche said women empowerment was important. She said, “JRA is committed and passionate about this internally and externally. We have trained women in engineering and construction throughout the years. Our key priority is to increase participation of women in this industry. We have a huge R1.4 billion in capital budget and we are pushing for more women to take advantage of these opportunities.”

Manche said women can participate in the agency’s projects through small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and community co-operatives. She also said they had identified challenges facing women, such as business skills, lack of access to capital and many others. Manche said the agency will set up an SMME desk and will conduct a series of workshops to educate women.

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