Forge Ahead`s African ICT Achievers Awards has upgraded its adjudication process to allow submissions and CVs to be filled out online, Forge Ahead MD Jane Mosebi announced at a breakfast launch for nominations this morning.
Mosebi said the process will be more technology-driven, much more user-friendly for those who make nominations and the judges who have to evaluate the submissions, and is more secure and credible.
"The decision has also been taken to differentiate clearly between organisational and individual awards as well as having overall winners in both categories. The judges may award a lifetime achievement award if they feel there is a suitable candidate," she said.
New organisation categories include an overall winner of the category, the top black ICT company, top ICT small, medium or micro enterprise, the top ICT government department in Africa, the ICT innovation awards, the best ICT workplace provider, the Civil Association awards for bridging the digital divide and the most progressive company of the year.
In the individual categories, the top public sector CIO award has been introduced along with the top African minister with an ICT portfolio, said Mosebi. Nominations close on 13 August.
With black economic empowerment (BEE) targets for the ICT BEE charter being released on Monday, Telkom CEO Sizwe Nxasana said at the breakfast that BEE needed to become a business imperative and not a set of rules in a charter that companies meet simply to try and get extra business.
"The shift needs to focus from targets to BEE as an economic driver. There are too many companies with no belief in BEE. This will only perpetuate the divide of the past with too many companies using 'black partners` as a front for their business."
Nxasana also said there needed to be a radical shift in the way the youth were educated. "Too many black matriculants are not being taught maths, science and technology."
He concluded that SA would have to face these challenges in the next 20 years or risk being left behind on the world stage.
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