Public works and infrastructure minister Dean Macpherson briefs the media in Cape Town on Tuesday

Nearly R63bn — that is the value of more than 180 infrastructure projects disrupted by the construction mafia across SA.

And the gangs have become so sophisticated that they are now setting up their own companies, posing as legitimate contractors to get onto building sites.

This was the warning from public works and infrastructure minister Dean Macpherson, who briefed the media in Cape Town on Tuesday.

"They were incredibly, and they are incredibly, sophisticated, and often they are politically connected," he said.