Local SMEs to get Thai connection

Johannesburg, 26 Nov 2004

Communications minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri hopes to generate new business opportunities in the international ICT market for local small to medium enterprise (SME) vendors, courtesy of a visit to Thailand, where she hopes to push for stronger ties between SA and that country.

Matsepe-Casaburri will be in Thailand for a week, between 3 and 10 December, leading a delegation comprising of senior officials from the communications, education, health and public service and administration departments.

Also attending as part of the delegation will be representatives from the State IT Agency, the Independent Communication Authority of SA and several from the underserviced area licence bidders.

"This visit will also have a greater involvement in Nepad ICT projects, through the provision of technical assistance from Thailand in terms of human resource development training for specific southern African nations," says Matsepe-Casaburri.

"Of particular interest to us is Thailand`s experience in the application of ICTs to e-education, e-health and e-governance."

The minister will hold discussions with her counterpart, Dr Surapong Suebwonglee, Thailand`s ICT minister, on a number of issues.

In particular, the discussions will pertain to ICT integration in the Thai education system and will focus on attempting to understand the manner in which the introduction of ICT in Thai schools has been sustained.

The delegation will also visit a number of institutions to witness first hand how the country`s ICT integration works, including the Thailand Software Park, School Net Thailand, National Electronics and Computer Centre, Scientific Academic and Research Network, and Thailand`s National Information Technology Committee.

"The basic aim is to see SA - and eventually the rest of the African continent - operating at the same level as the rest of the world in applying ICTs to development, for the benefit of all Africans," says Matsepe-Casaburri.