Following problems experienced in the first six months of operation, the Presidency says it will move its hotline to the Performance Monitoring and Evaluation ministry, in an attempt to improve its track record.
Despite previous claims by the Presidency that the service is running smoothly, Zuma announced that changes were necessary. Speaking during his response to debates on the State of the Nation address, Zuma noted that the hotline would have to begin to impact on service delivery.
“We have noted concerns also about the pressure on the service due to high call volumes and other challenges. We will continue attending to these to improve this valuable service”, said Zuma.
The Presidency added that the interest shown in the hotline meant it would have to form part of the delivery agreements of ministries.
When the hotline was opened in September 2009, the Presidency reported the entire project would cost R4 million. However, “teething problems” resulted in the tripling of the budget.
The hotline will be managed by the minister in the Presidency in charge of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation, Collins Chabane. While the ministry is yet to be fully staffed, the Presidency notes that the hotline will be transferred only once the ministry is established.
Swallowing money
Last year, the Presidency quietly made additional allocations of R7.6 million for its troubled hotline, bringing the total allocation for the project to over R11 million. The funding formed part of the department's “unforeseeable and unavoidable expenditure” - but no explanation for the sharp increase in budget allocation was given.
While the State IT Agency (SITA) previously reported that R1.7 million of the initial R4 million would be spent on IT requirements, it's not known if any more funding will be allocated to the IT components.
The IT costs included SITA support staff and wages for approximately 70 staff members, while the fixed technology infrastructure was expected to leverage off SITA's existing infrastructure.
The technology platform for the telephony and service management cost R800 000, and has been built around SITA's existing platform. The agency's expansion of its existing call centre to accommodate the new service will cost R600 000, while licensing and maintenance costs are R300 000.
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