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2014: the year of inaction

Johannesburg, 24 Jan 2014
Key, yet much-delayed, technology projects will stay on the backburner this year.
Key, yet much-delayed, technology projects will stay on the backburner this year.

As South Africans gear up to go to the polls, and the political machinery ramps up, vital technology issues that have been pending for years are going to move further into the background.

Government has several key projects pending, including officially switching on digital television, awarding much-needed spectrum, finalising the national broadband plan and local loop unbundling.

Yet, deadlines for these projects are unlikely to be met this year because the lack of funding, political will and understanding of technology will be exacerbated in the election year. After elections, a Cabinet change is likely, which will lead to further delays.

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Although the Department of Communications - under the leadership of minister Yunus Carrim - has made some progress on issues that were left over from Dina Pule's tenure, much remains to be done. Carrim arrived at the department last year with a strong focus and a long list of items to be tackled; yet he is expected - at best - to be a caretaker minister.

Included in this list is launching the much-delayed digital television, for which yet another deadline of April has been set. The latest sticking point is over the control system, which government has proposed must be used in subsidised set-top boxes, but is not mandatory for broadcast to retail decoders.

Switching on digital television will free up space in the 800MHz frequency range, which operators can use to provide broadband in more rural areas. SA started along the path to digital television in 2006.

Another spectrum allocation that has been years in the making is in the 2.6GHz range, which will allow long-term evolution to be rolled out in more rural areas. The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) is still waiting for a policy directive from the DOC.

In addition, the much-awaited National Broadband Plan, which will allow licensing of the spectrum, is still making its way through the process. While the department finally issued the plan for public comment towards the end of last year, this has yet to come into effect. Carrim indicated, last August, the plan was due to be completed in three months.

Although communications minister Yunus Carrim has made strides, he may not be in the post after May.
Although communications minister Yunus Carrim has made strides, he may not be in the post after May.

Another aspect that has yet to be finalised is local loop unbundling. The DOC had set a November 2012 deadline for the second phase, bit-stream access, which followed lower IP Connect rates, but ICASA is now dealing with submissions on the discussion documents.

Another DOC project with drawn-out delays is the proposed 112 national emergency number. Planned as a public-private partnership, it was meant to centralise police and emergency medical services call centres, but has seemingly fallen off the radar as the R58 million budgeted for it had to be used for other projects in the department.

Slow burn

In addition to the major communication aspects that still need to be sorted out, several other matters have yet to be resolved by the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA). This includes the much-awaited appointment of a government CIO and the release of a security framework.

It has, however, finally directed that government entities implement the ICT governance framework, although this comes about a year after Cabinet's approval.

The completion of the Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS) is still outstanding, despite November proposals to expedite it. This multibillion-rand project was approved by Cabinet in 2005 and implementation is expected to be completed by 2019.

SA will never catch up unless it acts this year, says industry veteran Adrian Schofield.
SA will never catch up unless it acts this year, says industry veteran Adrian Schofield.

It aims to replace the numerous disparate, inadequate or outdated systems employed by the public service with a single solution aligned to the legislation, policies and directives informing management of public sector organisations.

In addition, the government CIO position, meant to be filled by last April, has been vacant for more than two years. DPSA spokesperson Ndivhuwo Wa Ha Mabaya says all these issues are in progress and the department will communicate "in due course".

Going backwards

Industry veteran Adrian Schofield says SA will probably never catch up unless it makes "serious progress" this year. He points out these issues require political will and funding, but government will be side-tracked due to the upcoming elections.

Schofield says, post the election, a new Cabinet will be elected, and it will then take months before new plans are formulated. He says government is great at planning, but not at execution.

Technology has been taking a backseat, despite talk of a knowledge economy "since pa fell off the bus".

Schofield says the issue is whether government understands the role of technology as an enabler. He points out the National Development Plan, currently being presented at the World Economic Forum, in Davos, pays scant regard to technology.

Government's inaction ultimately harms the economy, says Ovum analyst Richard Hurst.
Government's inaction ultimately harms the economy, says Ovum analyst Richard Hurst.

Aspects such as spectrum allocation and a broadband policy are "serious needs" due to the costly and slow connectivity in SA, says Schofield. He says the only bright spot is that the private sector has been investing.

"If we are serious about growth in SA, we must put ICT at the base of enabling other activities."

Ovum analyst Richard Hurst says the projects that have fallen off the table are unlikely to be sorted out this year. This will stifle the industry, telecoms and innovation, as well as the economy, which is taking a pounding as it is, he says.

Much was meant to happen last year, if not the year before, says Hurst.

Hurst adds the projects that have been delayed were meant to empower the electorate and make government work better. He says there may be traction post the elections after everything has settled, but "let's not hold out too much hope".

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