The State Information Technology Agency (SITA) has deployed the Government Common Core Network (GCCN) and the network is stable and ready to support the virtual private networks (VPNs) of various departments. The VPN-enabled government-wide multimedia communications network aims to reduce duplication, facilitate interoperability and improve cost-performance.
It has created a single government network infrastructure, open to interoperability, with improved throughput and scalability.
The implementation of a single network management system (NMS) will have enormous benefits in terms of enhancing network reliability and functionality, not to mention performance.
Government networks have been focused on single policy solutions up to now, creating constraints within their service offerings. This has led solution providers in believing that government is a single non-differentiated entity, with the creation of a single network such as OpeNet.
SITA is currently creating VPNs at department level and is in the planning phase to integrate the justice system, Department of Labour and the local government level jointly with DBSA. SITA is also in the VPN planning phase for the departments of transport and agriculture in KZN.
"The ability to access and share data across government networks with different security policies and requirements has been one of the major failures of a single solution-based infrastructure like the OpeNet. The GCCN will provide the infrastructure for VOIP. SITA is about to enter a tendering phase for the implementation of VOIP," said Tshwene Tlabela, programme manager for the GCCN.
To cater for specific needs, a total of 16 different networks within government were existing and not interoperating due to closed standards. These multiple VPNs will be migrated onto the GCCN to leverage on leased-lines and switches to meet each department's specific requirements.
The GCCN recognises there are unique requirements within different environments based on variables such as business drivers, frequency of use, reliability, availability and response factors, and will therefore tailor-make its services to meet clients' specific needs.
It will eliminate the duplication of communication lines and allow the sharing of information across different platforms, transversal systems across different departments.
With SITA's formation in 1999, the organisation inherited various legacy applications and infrastructures to manage and maintain. Of these applications, the electronic communication or networking environment posed the biggest challenge as there were 16 different networks operated in government as well as the OpeNet that attempted to be a multi-departmental single government network.
In order to consolidate, create value, improve security, eliminate duplication and apply economies of scale on these diverse environments, SITA was faced with shortcomings, which made these legacy infrastructures fail their users to support other services converging from the ICT platform like value-added services.
The GCCN is a single physical fully redundant wide area network infrastructure to service the whole of government consisting of routers, switches, firewalls and data lines.
SITA then published Tender No 0089 for the VPN-enabled Government Common Core Network that included addressing legacy deficiencies for the industry to respond.
SITA's strategic directive regarding networks and future e-government strategies outlines and maps the integration of services on a single and manageable infrastructure.
Today's business environment sees the growing need for closer ties between government, suppliers, clients, citizens and other strategic business partners for the continued growth and prosperity of any country or concern. Coupled with this, companies/governments need to lower their operational costs in order to remain competitive.
"VPNs enable departments to reduce their current leased-line costs, long-distance telephone costs as well as catering for the possibility using the Internet access points as remote access nodes for dial-in users. VPNs also enable the various departments to dynamically rebuild their trusted connections between external parties as requirements continually change within the current dynamic business arena where partnerships may be temporary alliances.
Each of these areas present corporate network and information technology managers with a number of unique technical, support and business challenges that have not been met by existing network products and network service provider services. Support for remote access and business-to-business communications has been complex, costly and difficult to implement and maintain.
Radical changes in the business and computing environments have resulted in the need to support:
* Remote access system by employees working at home or on the road.
* Linkages with business partners for supply-chain management (business-to-business communication).
Pre-GCCN, we could only transact with those departments sharing infrastructure like clients using OpeNet. That was a limitation to other department to communicate applications and services currently supported by GCCN as mentioned above.
The VPN-enabled Government Common Core Network is based on sound architectural principles, open standards, is strategically planned, strongly backed and well managed. In its design the VPN-enabled GCCN provides:
* A platform for e-government - this initiative is seen to be the tool to support service delivery in governments hence the GCCN to enable application flow from end-to-end.
* Dynamic bandwidth assignment - bandwidth-on-demand is possible.
* Real exploitation of economies of scale - total cost of GCCN versus 16 networks.
* Full multimedia functionality - support for voice and video if and when required.
* Scalability - the network can grow with the business or shrink as and when necessary without disruption of services.
* High secure solutions - the security level on the network is higher than on all other network own by custodian departments.
* Lowest cost for highest capability - SITA paid R98 million as opposed to R600 million in 1998 as per report.
* Highly inter-connective solutions - the department can share information securely including transversal systems.
The milestones achieved:
1. We have now successfully implemented the GCCN.
2. Acquired a PTN licence as a right to transport voice over GCCN.
3. Migrated OpeNet, DMZ and SITA networks.
4. Developed RFT for trunking for VOIP at the core.
5. Defined the ISP VPN and ready for migration once subsidiary is established.
6. Developed a Telecoms Business Unit to monitor government voice spends.
Still to do:
1. Integrate the GCCN and PBX networks running data and voice.
2. Create a VOIP-enabled trunking platform across the GCCN.
3. Create a uniform numbering system across departments.
4. Migrate individual departments on the core network while upgrading the VPN environment to support voice and multimedia.
The PTN licence and its implication
The licence gives SITA the right to transport voice on the GCCN without interfering with the Telecommunications Act of 1996. This right is limited to SITA procuring the voice services on the GCCN for and on behalf of government and it is applied in line with the SITA amendment Act of October 2002.
The network and data/voice transmission is regarded by the Act as a mandatory service that must be procured by and through SITA. The interpretations of the amendments by different departments must note the optional services as may and mandatory services as must, as stipulated in the Act.
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