SA is on the brink of skills capacity collapse in many sectors, and action needs to be taken for skills development as a collective. The question is: do we have the right approach?
So asks Tiyani Nghonyama, COO and CTO of Geekulcha, who will be presenting at the ITWeb Security Summit 2016 at Vodacom World in Midrand from 16 to 20 May.
He says there have been a number of efforts taken to ensure general skills development. "Civic tech communities in particular have been driving initiatives that look to bring different ecosystems and skills together. The collaboration economy is being realised through hackathons, meet-ups, code-retreats and suchlike, and there is much excitement in tech being driven by these activities."
Civic tech is technology that facilitates engagement with the public for better development, improving citizen communications, bettering government infrastructure, and enhancing the public good on the whole.
He says the open data drive is taking shape in the country - the government is opening up and releasing data for public use. Organisations such as Code for South Africa are raising more awareness and building excitement.
A national crisis
Nghonyama says the skills shortage in information security specifically, is a national crisis. The government is spending a fortune in the fight against cyber attacks. The costs are escalating, but the war is not being won.
The local developer ecosystem also has a different shape and approach when it comes to information security, he says. While many developers are conscious about security updates in their systems and applications, not many know about the tools or the methods that must be used to build secure solutions.
According to him, a rise in civic tech brings many opportunities for South African social Innovation, but also raises questions around the issue of cyber security. More attention must be given to the protection of users' information, he says.
A multi-player game
Users of technology must be educated about the dangers of the Internet, and how to ensure their online privacy. He says this isn't easy, as getting the various stakeholders on board and ensuring best practices are adhered to is difficult and can lead to further vulnerabilities.
"Privacy can be seen as the price we have to pay for freedom," he says. Cyber attacks need a special kind of attention, awareness, and continuous revisions. "Let's instil a culture of security consciousness in both the developer ecosystem, and the consumer market."
Information security champions
Nghonyama says building adequate skills for information security development can be done alongside the momentum that is building up in civic tech. "Let's host more hackathons to address information security."
Innovators of the future need the right tools and champions to guide them to innovate with security in mind.
Share