The Department of Transport on Thursday stated that the FIFA organising committee had pointed out certain shortcomings with regard to transport, which had become apparent during the Confederations Cup.

"Mistakes were created for us to learn from. By next week, FIFA will be writing to us as transport to formally point out some of the transport challenges during the Confederations Cup, which we have already discussed with them. A concrete proposal is for us to appoint a dedicated 2010 Transport Coordinating Team driven by the national Department of Transport," said Minister of Transport Sibusiso Ndebele.

He noted that each province would also appoint a dedicated 2010 transport coordinator reporting directly to the national department. This coordinating team would enable the department to take decisive steps to overcome our shortcomings and ensure integration and coordination between national, provincial and local government 2010 transport plans.

"To this end, the coordinating team will submit a detailed report together with the required interventions at the next Transport Lekgotla scheduled for August this year," said the Minister.

Other key transport priorities highlighted by the Minister during the first MinMec meeting, included the engagement with the taxi industry to ensure that a new platform was created so that the taxi industry could participate more effectively in the mainstream economy.

Job creation was another issue that was raised, as transport had a major role to play in contributing towards President Jacob Zuma's commitment of 500 000 jobs by the end of this year, the department stated. The fight against fraud and corruption, particularly with the driving license system and the licensing of public transport operators through the provincial licensing board was also an issue, as well as the investment in transport infrastructure with the necessary private financing for the further modernisation of key transport infrastructure in order to build capacity required to sustain the country's economy in the future.