A TWENTY–strong shift of women at the Ngqura Container Terminal (NCT) successfully executed the loading and offloading of a consignment of 588 containers over eight hours. This team included crane operators, truck drivers, logistical planners, engineers and cargo coordinators that worked vessel MV Border and completed it in a single shift.
According to the managing executive of the Eastern Cape Terminals, Wandisa Vazi, “We’ve made great strides in ensuring representation of women in critical roles across terminal operations over the last few years”. She added that women had proven to be competent as the company had over 75% women in executive roles across the six terminals she oversees.
Vazi is also one of five females in the 13–member Transnet Port Terminals’ (TPT) executive committee, heading operations across bulk, containers and automotive sectors for the province. Overall, skills spend on women’s training programs over the last five years at TPT increased from R54 million to R101 million, with a cumulative value of R378.6 million on functional, technical, bursary and leadership programmes. In the same period, TPT promoted 294 women.
The women-only shift was a first-of-its-kind initiative in the operating division and showcased the merits of women in maritime logistics as South Africa observes Women’s Month in August. “Imagine your car weighing over 1 000 tons and you having to drive it 40 metres above the ground. You start to realise the kind of barriers women are breaking in our environment, especially operators of heavy lifting equipment,” said Vazi.
Vazi thanked supportive male employees at the terminal who agreed to rotate shifts to allow the successful execution of this initiative.
The Ngqura Container Terminal (NCT) forms part of a network of sixteen sea cargo and three inland terminals managed by Transnet Port Terminals (TPT). TPT is a division of Transnet SOC Ltd and is the operator responsible for loading and offloading cargo aboard vessels calling the seven South African ports. TPT operations target four major market sectors namely automotive, containers, bulk and breakbulk.
