Local telecommunications and IT companies have pledged to bring free e-mail access to 50 000 South Africans.
Speaking at the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day celebration, in Soweto, yesterday, communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda said local ICT businesses, state-owned enterprises and the South African Communications Forum have committed to bringing Internet services to the underprivileged.
While the minister gave no timeframe for implementing the services, he called on the organisations to increase the expected number. “I will encourage them to extend the number, because a majority of our people are indeed without e-mail addresses, despite owning personal computers and mobile telephones,” he added.
Nyanda said he was concerned that at the current rate, the e-skills production is not meeting the requirements of SA's economy. “We are, therefore, working with the ministers of basic education, higher education and training, labour, science and technology, and others to look into these problems to decide what can be done within the ICT Skills Working Group.”
The minister explained that the new workgroup will report to the recently-created National Information Society Council, which is expected to advise government on the policies around information-building in ICT.
“These challenges demand of us to institute strategies and investment to drive connectivity in schools, in the health centres and tele-centres, connecting business development centres and towns and villages to improve the quality of the lives of our people.”
The minister again called on a public private partnership to improve access to infrastructure and services in the underserviced areas.
Share
