South African Transport Minister Barbara Creecy released for public consultation the government's draft National Rail Master Plan, which aims to mobilize 2 trillion rand ($120 billion) in public and private investments over 30 years to increase rail freight volumes, Engineering News reported on April 23. This comes as the Business Leadership Association South Africa raised South Africa's reform completion index by 0.4% to 71.75, but noted that reform momentum has decelerated in the first quarter of 2026, pointing to delays in publishing the country's Network Statement for railways.