The State Information Technology Agency (SITA) says the in-house tool built in response to last year’s Eastern Cape floods has been deployed at scale, reaching municipalities across the province.
Named the Provincial Disaster Management Application System (PDMAS), SITA says it’s a fully integrated, web-based digital platform developed by its Eastern Cape team in partnership with the Eastern Cape Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs.
According to the government IT agency, PDMAS is not a reporting tool but an end-to-end disaster management operating system.
This, as gaps in the State’s disaster response capability became visible amid the 2025 provincial floods that claimed more than 101 lives and caused infrastructure damage exceeding R1 billion.
SITA notes coordination broke down, information was fragmented and response was delayed. The system, as it existed, was not built for the scale or speed that crisis demands.
The provincial team partnered with the Eastern Cape province and built the PDMAS.
“Disaster response is fundamentally an information challenge – the speed, accuracy and integration of data directly determine outcomes. PDMAS creates a unified, real-time operational picture that enables government to act decisively and with greater precision when it matters most. This is SITA's capability in action,” says Tlali Tlali, head of corporate affairs at SITA.
Built over eight months, SITA indicates the system was informed by deep consultation with disaster management practitioners on the ground across the Eastern Cape.
Using a hybrid project management methodology, it went live on 21 November 2025, accompanied by comprehensive training for provincial and municipal users across the Eastern Cape.
“When systems are fragmented, response efforts become delayed and disjointed. PDMAS integrates data, communication and coordination into a single platform, thus enhancing situational awareness and enabling faster, more targeted interventions. This is what it looks like when government builds for itself, by itself,” says Tlali.
Today, municipalities across the Eastern Cape are actively operational on PDMAS, with continuous technical support and system maintenance provided by SITA’s provincial team.
According to the agency, the province’s disaster management operated through manual reporting, telephone-based coordination, and siloed departmental systems. Visibility was limited and decisions were slow.
PDMAS consolidates incident data, resource tracking, geospatial intelligence, weather feeds, and cross-departmental communication into a single, real-time platform.
“Decision-makers no longer wait for information to be compiled and reported upward. They see it as it happens. Resources are tracked, not recalled from memory. Early warnings reach field teams before conditions deteriorate. Coordination happens on a shared platform.
“As climate-related disasters grow more frequent and complex across South Africa, the Eastern Cape’s approach establishes a practical, replicable model for how technology-led capability can strengthen resilience at a provincial level.”
“Behind every incident captured on this system is a community in distress. PDMAS gives government the real-time visibility, integrated intelligence, and coordinated command to act with greater speed, precision and care. This is what digital capability built for public good looks like,” concludes Tlali.
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