The State Information Technology Agency (SITA) has awarded a government virtual private network (VPN) contract to a consortium led by arivia.kom.
SITA announced yesterday that arivia.kom had been awarded the contract to implement the VPN-enabled Government Core Network, with technology supplied by Nortel Networks. The initial value of the contract is estimated at R100 million.
The solution involves a VPN working off a common core network, which will link 13 existing disparate networks in use by different government departments. It will also provide a multi-service platform for handling multimedia communications.
As project leader, arivia.kom is responsible for the supply and implementation of the network. The consortium partners are Nortel Networks, which will supply hardware infrastructure; IMS, which will supply training; and Comztek for logistics and supply. The project is due to start at the end of November.
"SITA has been mandated by government to consolidate the disparate IT infrastructures in order to support the e-government initiative with greater efficiency and productivity," says arivia.kom CEO Zeth Malele. "We are pleased to be SITA`s partner in this initiative and are confident that the solution will meet the exact requirements."
"Our solution is a good example of how technology can provide a sophisticated network along with offering the customer business benefits of improved efficiency," says Rick Rogers, country manager of Nortel Networks South Africa.
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