In a run up to its convention later this month, the National Broadband Forum (NBF) has released a draft framework for a national broadband strategy.
The draft framework was jointly developed by the Association for Progressive Communications, the Southern African NGO Network and the Shuttleworth Foundation.
The forum states its goal is to provide affordable broadband access to the Internet for all South Africans. This will only be achieved once fibre and wireless broadband infrastructure are maximised, it notes.
The forum proposes that both urban and rural areas should be taken into consideration. It calls for steps to be taken to stimulate the provision of content, and use by citizens, the private sector and consumers.
"The availability of affordable bandwidth will stimulate the development of commercial content and services, [and] strategies to incentivise the production of necessary uneconomic content and services need to be developed."
Top of the list
The forum says government should adopt new priorities, such as the introduction of incentives for the building of more fibre and wireless broadband infrastructure across the country. It also calls for an "integrated approach to stringing cables in cooperation with other infrastructure build-outs".
It adds that this process should be "coordinated, particularly with regard to power lines and roads and in new spatial developments".
Government should also prepare "regulatory frameworks for fair access to and sharing of infrastructure, where appropriate, in the interests of maximising the network effect of having as many people online as possible", proposes the NBF.
Other items called for are already on government`s agenda - such as the construction of municipal broadband networks and the opening up of spectrum for wireless broadband.
The forum adds that municipal broadband should be on a "cost-based, non-discriminatory basis to make available their considerable excess capacity to the public, either as a public service or for commercial purposes".
The necessary spectrum should be made available "timeously, equitably and affordably, to maximise the rapid deployment of infrastructure across the country".
Alternative energy sources should also be seriously considered, says the NBF. It notes that alternative energy will ensure broadband connectivity isn`t an issue in low-power areas and calls for all new infrastructure to rely on renewable energy sources.
Expand mandates
Government should prioritise the production of digital content in local languages, to improve the take up of e-government services, and content industries should be incentivised to develop digital broadband content, says the NBF.
Steps to enhance e-governance and e-citizenship in a broadband environment should also be taken, says the forum.
"National, provincial and local governments should digitise and distribute public sector information and improve access to public sector content online in anticipation of affordable broadband access for all."
The NBF calls for the expansion of the mandate of the Media and Diversity Development Agency to "support the media to transition to a broadband environment". It also states the Universal Service and Access policy should be "expanded to support community-based networks".
The implementation of the broadband strategy should be closely monitored "according to an agreed set of indicators in order to ensure the goal and objectives are met", it notes.
"This can be done by drawing up specific timetables and benchmarks; this would encourage the successful implementation and advancement of national broadband policies, incentives or programmes."
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