By Zibonele Ntuli
COMMUNICATIONS Minister Ivy Matsepe-Cassaburri praised Cape Town for having positioned itself as one of the technologically advanced cities in the country.
Speaking at the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) ICT annual forum meeting in Johannesburg yesterday, Dr Matsepe-Casaburri said through partnering with a leading IT company, Cape Town was now a "frontrunner" in the country's national IT strategy.
The ICT Sector summit's primary aim is to report back and assess working progress on implementing 2002 ICT Sector Agreements. "The benefits for all have been enormous, e-government services have been developed, and the services to its citizens have been improved. All city employees have access to mainstream banking giving low-income employees a measure of economic empowerment. "The cherry on top of the cake for this project, is that they have instituted the largest IT training programme in our history, boosting the IT skills of the city by training thousands of employees," she explained.
Cape Town's Smart City strategy is aimed at empowering local government to address developmental needs through efficient and accountable Information and Communication Technology (ICT). It has since won numerous awards, including the 2002/2003 African ICT Achiever's E-Government Award. In August 2003, the Smart Cape Access project received 1 million US dollars in the Gates Foundation Access to Learning Award.
In June 2004, the City received the coveted 21st-Century Achievement Award from the Computerworld Honors program, hosted in Washington DC, for visionary use of information technology in the category of Government & Non-Profit Organisations.
The minister added that one of the greatest challenges had been the linking of government programmes and projects across all spheres of government. She said what the city had done opened an opportunity for skills and experience to be brought to local, provincial and national government.
Matsepe-Cassaburri explained that the ICT sector was recognised as one that had opportunities for job creation, economic growth and economic development. She said South Africa needed to position itself to meet the challenges of the global competition by developing strategies that would ensure economic development and developing people who were historically excluded.
"We see clearly that we are faced with a grave paradox and contradictions; growth and decline, great and little opportunity, low and high skills. These are the challenges that we as the Nedlac ICT social partners face," she said.
She added that government had approved the Convergence Bill that was being prepared for the parliamentary process. The prescripts in the Bill are aimed at stimulating skill training for women, youth and the disabled, she said.
"Once the Bill becomes law, it will provide boundless opportunities for economic advancement for those interested in exploring the social and economic benefits of the sector. We hope this Bill will be smooth and fast," she said.
Source: BuaNews
Presentation for Seminar
