PROJECT PREPARATION TRUST OF KWAZULU-NATAL
Finance in Durban

Project Preparation Trust of KwaZulu Natal (PPT) has a track record of 20 years in successfully preparing and managing a wide range of developmental projects for disadvantaged communities and in mobilizing capital funding and other resources for them. PPT works closely with communities, various spheres of government, donor funders and other civil society organizations in achieving this objective. PPT’s approach to development is participative, systematic and holistic. Providing project preparation support to communities, funders, all spheres of government and other development stakeholders. Promoting good practice, including holistic and sustainable development as well as the development and dissemination of replicable development methodologies. Transferring preparation and other developmental skills to government and other stakeholders. PPT operates primarily as a management core which assists communities, government and donor clients in managing project preparation in an effective, systematic and participative manner. In executing these services, PPT ensures the support and participation of all key stakeholders including the beneficiary community, local municipality, key government departments, and project funders. PPT has received and successfully managed a wide range of funding and has a clean audit history in this regard. Securing sufficient funding for our pro-poor developmental programmes is an ongoing challenge for PPT and represents the major constraint on our ability to enhance and up-scale the work we do and thereby increase the number of beneficiaries we are able to reach. In addition to the above-mentioned funders, PPT works closely with a wide range of partner organisations, government entities and professional service providers. PPT also welcomes the opportunity to foster and establish new working relationships. They include engineers, town planners, local economic development experts, social facilitators, environmental and geotechnical consultants, and agricultural experts. Many of these service providers have a long association with PPT and have contributed much to the organisation’s achievements. A rigorous and systematic project preparation methodology applicable to all projects. Detailed toolkits for the preparation of seven key types of infrastructure projects (sewer treatment upgrades, water treatment upgrades, bulk water supply, water reticulation, bulk access roads, landfill sites, rural sanitation). These include: low income housing, infrastructure, informal settlement upgrading, special needs housing, pro-poor economic development, integrated development planning, sustainable energies, skills transfer and capacity building, land reform, and policy and strategy work. PPT was established in order to assist South Africa with its transition to democracy through providing additional capacity and expertise to help overcome a range of developmental backlogs. PPT operates according to a strict set of written financial controls that govern all financial activities including those relating to projects. PPT has a clean audit history in this regard with 20 successive unqualified audits since its establishment. Semi annual and annual reports on both financial and operational aspects are submitted to the Board for consideration and approval. The annual work-plan includes a range of empirical performance result indicators across various key performance areas (including its developmental programmes, human resources management and finances). Regular meetings between management and the Finance and Operations Committees of the Board ensure that there is effective communication and monitoring of key financial and operational parameters. PPT manages and evaluates its sustainability from both financial and human resources perspectives.