The second national operator`s (SNO`s) business plan is ready and the shareholders` agreement will be completed in the next few days for licensing by the regulator.
This is according to minister of communications Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri, delivering the Department of Communications` budget speech in Parliament this afternoon.
She also announced that the Convergence Bill is before Parliament. Matsepe-Casaburri noted that the Convergence Bill commitment would place SA among the world`s leaders in the development of the information society.
The minister said overwhelming consensus has been reached on the ICT empowerment charter, which is before Cabinet for approval. After its approval next week, the charter will be gazetted and a process started that will end in the publishing of a code of good practice for the ICT sector.
She noted that her department will enter a dialogue with social partners, especially the Ministry of Labour and the sub-sectors of unions, for example postal, broadcast and telecommunications workers, to discuss the changing nature of the ICT sector.
Matsepe-Casaburri said the implementation of a broadband network is crucial for achieving socio-economic development goals, especially for the provision of public services, such as e-learning, e-health and e-government.
"Accordingly, my department is leading other relevant departments to address the question of increasing growth to affordable access and use of broadband."
The minister says the Department of Communications is leading work aimed at developing new policy directives focusing on reducing the cost of doing business through increasing the affordability of telecommunications by the general public.
Commenting on the regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA), she said her department has recognised its increased responsibilities and its competition with industry for a limited pool of highly-skilled staff and the funding is now receiving urgent attention.
ICASA`s workload is to be increased, as the postal regulator will be transferred from the communications department to fall under ICASA.
As part of the Department of Communications` social upliftment programme, youth will be used for the purpose of building awareness of the potential of ICT in improving people`s lives and assisting the public to use them. These youth will be known as eCadres.
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