The Gauteng provincial government's ICT focus seems to be slipping, despite past promises that technology would be employed as a key driver of development and poverty alleviation.
Delivering her first state of the province address yesterday, newly-appointed premier Nomvula Mokonyane concentrated mainly on socio-economic issues, and echoed president Jacob Zuma's tough stance on non-delivery and corruption.
However, unlike in previous years, the premier's address lacked any real mention of ICT, or any word on the ambitious technology projects the province touted in previous years.
The only ICT project to get a mention was the ailing Gauteng Online initiative, which she raised in the wider context of improving general school infrastructure in the province. “Gauteng Online must be online so that all our learners, including those from the poorest backgrounds, have access to the Internet for learning purposes,” Mokonyane stated.
Her comments come shortly after it was reported the project is all but floundering, as it was revealed last month that many Gauteng schools are opting out of the initiative and mulling their own IT projects.
The Gauteng Online project was announced in 2001 and R500 million was initially allocated over the course of three years to build the province-wide school computer network and install computer labs at schools. In 2005, it was given an additional R100 million to fast-track it, and the deadline for its completion was extended to 2006, then to 2007.
The project has still not been completed and has been plagued by a lack of teacher training, theft, broken computers and failed Internet connections, and has been described as a failure by the Governors' Alliance.
The organisation represents 384 schools across Gauteng, and last month pulled its support for the Gauteng Online project, saying the Gauteng Shared Services Centre (GSSC) was to blame for not fixing the problems facing the initiative.
Gone too far
In her speech yesterday, Mokonyane was also scathing of the GSSC, saying that not only private sector organisations, but also government officials, have been frustrated by the operations of the agency.
“This government must not be responsible for the downfall of emerging entrepreneurs because of our own inefficiencies. Let us ensure that officials do what they are paid for and stop blaming systems - this has gone too far and must be addressed now,” she said.
The GSSC, which was supposed to provide live streaming of yesterday's state of the province address via its Web site and post the speech online, was yesterday morning afflicted by an unspecified IT systems failure - thus failing to deliver. The agency has refused to comment on the problem.
Mokonyane's lack of ICT focus is a stark contrast to her predecessor's stance. Former premier Mbhazima Shilowa considered ICT as central to the province's economic development. During his state of the province address last year, he noted the province would implement the G-link (Gauteng link) initiative. This, he claimed, would provide affordable broadband access to 95% of Gauteng's people within the next five years and add significantly to the province's gross domestic product and job creation efforts by 2014.
Shilowa said the initiative will not only enhance economic growth and investment, but also contribute to social development and improve the delivery of social services.
He also vowed to expand the province's Innovation Hub to accommodate 40 high-technology SMME companies, and made mention of several other ICT-related projects that the province was driving. These include initiatives pertaining to education, health and skills development.
Similarly, in 2007, Shilowa's address carried a heavy technology focus. He acknowledged ICT plays a crucial role in enhancing the province's economic growth and provides a platform for the expansion of the call centre industry and other enterprises in the services sector.
During his tenure, Shilowa focused strongly on the development of Blue IQ initiatives, international technology co-operation agreements, as well as broadband projects in the province.
Recent attempts to obtain updates on the progress of the multitude of previously-announced technology projects have been unsuccessful.
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