Khato Civils, the Pride of Black Owned Construction Giants
Friday, October 06, 2017
Khato Civils headquarters at Midrand, Johannesburg
During their recently held Annual General Meeting in Johannesburg, the executive chairman of the two civil works and engineering companies Simbi Phiri proudly announced that his companies have been graded level 9 in Civil Engineering, general building, mechanical engineering and electrical infrastructure.
To put the Khato Civils and South Zambezi’s impressive grading credentials into context , the latest CIDB report released in July says that most black owned contractors make grades 2-4. The CIDB report also observes that black ownership is lower in mechanical, electrical and specialist engineering contractors and significantly lower in grade 9, at around 25-30%.
Acting Agriculture Minister, Edwin Dikoloti, is right in saying opening an export-ready facility whilst Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is still spreading would risk getting the whole country blacklisted before a single carcass leaves the door.A ban like that would break the already stressed nation. So, the postponement, painful as it is, is the right thing to do. The local economy is being squeezed from both ends. FMD has already slammed the door...