The transport sector has made strides in the different facets of empowerment, though the sector has many subsectors, each guided by its own empowerment goals.
Other factors that make this sector difficult to empower are:
- Foreign ownership in most companies (for instance maritime);
- The fact that the various transport sectors are different in operations and cannot be bound by one charter;
- Most of the sectors are male-dominated and labour-intensive - for instance, maritime and road transportation - making the introduction of women on the operation side difficult; and
- The black sheep sector, the taxi industry, has ensured that the regulatory process moves at a snail's pace. The taxi recapitalisation process is stalled regularly, and it now seems as if a full implementation will be possible only later this year.
The bus industry has been complaining about a lack of subsidies and long-term contracts. This, the operators contend, is a serious drawback for big operators as it limits their integration and the accommodation of small operators. They say big operators are unable to outsource routes to local small and medium-sized enterprises before government awards a long-term contract on the same route. These discussions have been going on for a long time.
Despite challenges, encouraging empowerment transactions were announced during 2005.
Most companies seem happy to adhere to the sector's principal charter - which in theory conforms to the department of trade & industry's codes of good governance.
The sectors have been classified into the following subsectors: maritime; clearing & forwarding; road freight; bus; aviation; rail; state-owned entities; and taxis. Empowerment in the sector has become a business imperative, rather than a feelgood exercise.
Super Group investor relations executive Karen Bell says fleet management companies, for example, need empowerment credentials if they are to succeed in securing a contract with government or parastatals.
Super Group has the Peu Group as its empowerment partner. The two have a relationship spanning more than eight years.
Imperial Holdings and a group led by Popo Molefe and Valli Moosa of Lereko Mobility have announced an empowerment partnership. Lereko will acquire a 7,25% equity interest in Imperial. Lereko is 49% owned by Imperial and 51% by the black consortium. Imperial's first empowerment deal was in 1998, when it helped form Ukhamba for its black staff and business partner. In 2004, it issued 10,1% of its shares to Ukhamba for the benefit of its 15 500 employees.
Cynics complain that Imperial holds significant stakes in both transactions - 49% in each deal - but the company justifies it by saying that it has taken some risks in the deal.
Cargo Carriers has avoided what it calls "boardroom empowerment" by initiating Buhle Betfu, a joint venture with small sugar cane growers in Mpumalanga. The growers have collectivised their transportation and logistics efforts to transport their cane to the mills, and put some of the profits from the operation into buying back shares in the joint venture company. The growers own 36% of the company, a figure that will grow to a majority 60%.
