SA's largest open source software (OSS) tender should be awarded on 31 January, says the State IT Agency (SITA).
The tender is for an OSS office suite, designed to "replace all things Microsoft" on government PCs.
Wynand Swart, project manager for the 'OSS Solutions for Workstations' tender at SITA, believes that in time all government departments will use the open source software. However, he cautions that it will not be an overnight, countrywide transition because some departments must honour existing contracts with Microsoft.
"Most government departments have declared their willingness to use OSS," he says.
Swart confirms that SITA's Supplier Selection Authority (SSA) meeting is scheduled for 31 January, where the identity of the successful supplier will be revealed.
The Supplier Selection Board (SSB), which forwards recommendations to the SSA, will meet on 23 January.
But Swart adds that the SSA meeting will only take place on the 31st if consensus is reached by the SSB.
"We would like to see them recommend more than one provider to the SSA," he says.
Though Swart declines to comment on the value of the tender, he confirms that the tender has attracted interest from major OSS providers.
Since the closing date for tender submissions last October, SITA's evaluation board has been conducting detailed assessments of the competing companies. "It's been a lengthy process," says Swart.
Evaluation procedures took into account financial and technical components (which each accounted for 45% of the assessment), and black empowerment components (which accounted for 10%).
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