The “either-or” narrative pitting accelerated infrastructure delivery against localisation has been challenged by Dr Bernie Fanaroff, who played a central role in the development of the Steel Master Plan, which identifies localisation as one of several instruments to be used to revive the embattled sector. Speaking at a conference on the master plan hosted by the Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa, Fanaroff questioned the view emerging in some parts of government, business and academia that “localisation will add unnecessary costs, delays and quality issues” to the delivery of urgently needed infrastructure.
