A draft version of the long-awaited ICT charter has finally been gazetted by trade and industry minister Rob Davies.
Members of the public, especially those in the ICT sector, now have an opportunity to provide input and comment until 10 August.
According to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the charter, once it becomes a sector code, will “supersede” the generic codes of good practice and be the “primary reference for transformation in the sector”.
The charter's “ultimate goal is to bridge the digital divide in the country”, says the department. According to the DTI, the draft charter sets a black ownership target of 30% “to be achieved by entities in the sector”.
The 30% ownership level has been slammed by the industry, which argues it is too onerous and will complicate transformation initiatives.
It also sets a target of 5% of after tax profit that must be spent on enterprise development initiatives aimed at growing and developing black-owned ICT enterprises. In addition, 1.5% of net profit must be spent on “socio-economic development initiatives to improve the lives of communities through programmes such as ICTs in education and health,” says the DTI.
“Once gazetted as a sector code, the ICT charter shall serve as a guideline for transforming the ICT sector, while also contributing to the growth of the ICT market in SA, which is projected to hit R250 billion by 2020,” says the department.
Work on the charter started in 2003, which was followed by the launch, two years later, of the first “final” version. Then the DTI gazetted the BEE Code of Good Practice in February 2007, which meant the document had to be aligned with the codes, causing yet another delay.
In addition, not all the steering committee members agreed with the charter's content, which meant it could not be gazetted. These issues have now all apparently been resolved.
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