Government's plan to extend the reach of its services and provide connectivity to rural areas through Thusong Service Centres - initially started 15 years ago - is a failure, and unsustainable.
In the first half of the year, government only managed to ensure the functionality of five of the 100 connected Thusong service centres.
The Department of Public Services and Administration (DPSA), which seems to have overall control of the project, failed to ensure this connectivity mostly because of an internal budget restructuring around the project.
A National Treasury official explains this is happening because government wants to set up dedicated funding that will take care of the centre's operational requirements, instead of this being the responsibility of municipalities.
In addition, says the official, the state wants to establish a funding stream for infrastructure and connectivity provision, a move that should be wrapped up in time to go through the main budget process in February.
Currently, three departments are involved in managing the centres: the new Department of Communications to handle branding; the Department of Public Service and Administration to deal with connectivity, while the Department of Cooperate Governance and Traditional Affairs deals with municipal policy.
Other departments that are involved include the Department of Labour and the Department of Home Affairs.
Failed
ICT veteran Adrian Schofield says the centres are a failure and unsustainable because of several reasons, including a lack of clarity around who owns the project and how resources are harnessed across different departments. He notes experience shows different departments "do not always cooperate too well".
In addition, notes Schofield, the longer it takes to wrap up a project, the "more likely it is to lose its focus and momentum" as management and strategies change. He says, while the concept is needed, "It is a failure among many failures. It starts well and then fades away."
Each of SA's 283 municipalities was meant to have a centre by this year, but there are currently only 183 Thusong centres in 107 local municipalities, which are complemented by 114 integrated mobile units. There is also a network of 41 libraries and 58 telecentres at the centres. However, a year ago, there were 193 operational centres, with plans to add as many as another 140.
How these plans are progressing and the status of the current sites are not known as neither the DPSA nor the State IT Agency responded to repeated requests for comment.
Key services
Thusong centres were launched 15 years ago as "one of the primary vehicles intended to drive the much desired change of improved service delivery and to increase access to services and information," said communications minister Faith Muthambi, in commemorating last month's Thusong Service Centre Campaign.
Despite the apparent failure, Muthambi noted the one-stop service centres play an important role "in providing a critical service and information lifeline to the public on a day-to-day basis". She said the centres provide access to government services such as applications for ID documents, birth certificates, social grants and municipal services.
The centres are also "key communication hubs offering full information and communications technology connectivity," said Muthambi. "Much-needed education and training development initiatives are also implemented at these centres to uplift local communities and equip residents with the essential skills needed to secure employment. Local economic development services in the centres offer critical advice and support to small businesses, helping them to grow and thrive in the communities they serve."
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