Olebogeng Manhe

Name: Olebogeng Manhe
Address: Pretoria, ZA
Telephone: +27128810210

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Olebogeng Manhe

Group Chairman & Co-Founder of GIC | Strategic Leader in Infrastructure, Mining & Energy | Passionate About Uplifting Communities | Project Executive

24/06/2026

In most South African communities, informal traders are part of the daily economy.

Food, clothes, airtime, household goods, meals, and services that people use everyday are all drawn from informal traders by hundreds of thousands of people every day.

I think we often speak about this part of the economy as if it reflects survival alone, but that framing ignores the skill and experience needed to operate and thrive in the informal sector.

From my youth in Kuruman to today, I’ve often found that informal traders have a stronger grasp of customer experience, pricing, cash flow, supply, and competition then formal entrepreneurs. They know when people get paid, what they can afford, what sells quickly, and how to keep customers coming back. That is business knowledge.

It’s a well that all stakeholders should work hard to tap for job creation and economic development. Doing so means supporting informal traders with policies and infrastructure that lowers their cost of doing business, from roads to designated trading spaces.

The more we can crowd in South Africa’s entire economy and drive both community and regional growth, the better.

23/06/2026

South Africa’s wine industry has had a difficult season, especially with the recent flooding that affected several farms and communities.

Even so, recent commentary on the 2026 harvest points to the continuing quality in our wines.

Blaauwklippen Vineyards has given me a clear view of how much discipline goes into building that kind of value. Wine rewards patience. It takes craft, consistency, careful positioning, and respect for the land and people behind every bottle.

There is always pressure to produce at scale, but long-term value is built through the standard that people come to trust.

For South African wine, that standard is carried through quality, consistency, story, and experience. When people understand what sits behind the bottle, the brand becomes easier to recognise and protect.

South African wine has earned its place globally. Seasons like this test the industry, but they also show why reputation has to be protected with care.

22/06/2026

South Africa’s road fatality rate - between 24.5 and 25.9 people for every 100,000 - sits above the global average of around 18 deaths per 100,000 people, with long weekends such as the one that has just passed and the December holidays major contributors as traffic volumes increase.

The government wants to halve these numbers by 2030, with effort needed from all stakeholders in getting there. Crucially, as my friend and colleague Roelof van den Berg highlighted, road design plays an important role in enhancing road safety.

As Roelof says:
“𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘥𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘴, 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴.”

I strongly agree. While it’s crucial that we cast our net far and wide for learning and insights, adopting and implementing them in South Africa’s unique context is equally important, backed by governance and compliance.

You can read Roelof’s full thoughts here:
https://sundayindependent.co.za/ios/news/2026-05-04-south-africa-aims-to-halve-road-deaths-by-2030-through-integrated-safety-measures/

18/06/2026

I have had many days where the urgent things arrived all at once.

In those moments, leadership begins with deciding where your attention will bring the most clarity.

Some situations need your direct involvement. Others are better served by trusting the people around you, asking the right questions, and giving them room to carry the work properly.

I have learnt this the hard way at times. When you care about the work, stepping back can feel less natural than stepping in.

That is usually the moment to be most careful with your attention. It is one of the most important resources a leader has. Where it goes, people take their cue.

Good leadership requires the judgement to step in with purpose, guide with care, and trust capable people to do the work they are there to do.

17/06/2026

Calgro M3 Developments officially breaking ground on its Bankenveld District City project is an important milestone for urban development in Johannesburg.

The location alone makes it worth paying attention to, positioned between the N3, M1, and Gautrain Marlboro Station.

This is the kind of development that speaks to how Johannesburg and other South African urban spaces can densify in a more practical way.

Beyond the expected creation of 20,000 to 30,000 jobs over the next 15 to 20 years, the project will provide affordable housing close to Sandton and other major economic nodes.

Approximately 34% of the land has also been allocated to infrastructure, which should improve residents' quality of life and support the surrounding area.

When housing, transport access, infrastructure, and economic activity are planned together, urban growth becomes much easier for people to live with and participate in.

16/06/2026

Today, we commemorate the 50th anniversary of Youth Day.

16 June 1976 remains one of the most important moments in South Africa’s history. It was a day shaped by the courage of young people who stood against a system that denied them dignity, freedom, and opportunity.

As South Africa’s democracy approaches 40 years, we have to keep asking whether today’s youth are being given the future that previous generations fought for.

That future needs to be built through real opportunity.

Young people need access to quality education, practical skills, workplace exposure, mentorship, and meaningful work so they can begin their careers properly. Both the public and private sectors have a role to play in creating those pathways.

15/06/2026

Local economies need local ownership.

That thought was top of mind when I recently read through the WTM Africa Responsible Tourism Awards citations, which highlighted businesses creating value through local sourcing, stronger supply chains, and encouraging guests to buy local.

I think there is a useful lesson in that for tourism, events, and broader development.

A project, destination, or event can create jobs, which is important. However, the value becomes much deeper when local people also supply the food, provide the transport, sell the crafts, host the experiences, and build businesses around the activity being created.

The same applies to major events. The event floor creates visibility, but much of the value lies in the conversations around it: the coffees, dinners, site visits, supplier introductions, and the relationships formed because the event brought people together in the first place.

That wider activity is part of the economic value too.

For me, responsible tourism should keep asking a practical question:
Who gets to participate in the value being created?

11/06/2026

I was very interested to read that Redefine Properties, South Africa’s second-biggest landlord, is running out of rooftop space for solar.

The company reportedly saved R108 million over the last six months through its solar rollout, which shows how important energy has become for commercial property and business operations.

What caught my attention was the next opportunity they are exploring: selling private power to end-users.

To me, this shows the effect of the electricity market liberalisation that started several years ago. We are beginning to see signs of a more competitive electricity market taking shape.

That should benefit businesses and the paying public over time. Better competition can support better pricing, stronger supply options, and a market where energy is generated and traded in more practical ways.

10/06/2026

Like most South Africans, I have been paying close attention to the rise in fuel and diesel prices.

In construction, the concern is very immediate: how do we keep projects moving when the cost of movement keeps increasing

My friend and Gap Infrastructure Corporation’s CEO, Roelof van den Berg, recently wrote an important piece on the impact of soaring diesel prices on construction sites.

He made the point that the sector needs to adapt before “pressure reaches construction sites”, and I fully agree with that.

It is a difficult moment for the sector, but it also gives us a reason to look carefully at better ways of doing business. Stronger planning, better cost control, smarter logistics, and clearer operational visibility can help reduce pressure where it lands hardest.

Read Roelof’s article here:
https://iol.co.za/business-report/economy/2026-05-15-diesel-dependent-construction-sites-are-feeling-the-impact-of-soaring-fuel-prices/

09/06/2026

World-class infrastructure does not happen by accident.

In my career, I have seen this lesson come back again and again: good outcomes depend on governance, implementation, and compliance working together.

Governance creates direction and accountability.
Implementation turns plans into visible progress.
Compliance protects the integrity of the work and the people affected by it.

At Gap Infrastructure Corporation, this thinking shapes how we approach delivery at both an operational and systems level. Changing lives requires structures that hold, teams that execute properly, and standards that protect the outcome.

When those three elements work together, infrastructure can make a real difference.

Address

Pretoria

Telephone

+27128810210

Website

http://www.gic.co.za/

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