IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

The centre, called the Cape Gateway Contact and Walk-in Centre, is part of the provincial administration's online strategy and is expected to improve service delivery in all departments.

Bwired is an empowered telecommunications service provider that has a strong focus on answering the need for broadband ser
vices, mainly in underserviced areas. It was formed after Ericsson South Africa was 
awarded the billion-rand Johannesburg Broadband Network Project in March last year. The first phase of the project began in April 2009 and should be completed over three years. The vision is to establish a citywide, high-speed broadband network that should ultimately stimulate socioeconomic development throughout the city.

She says similar systems are in use in cities such as Las Vegas in the US and are more efficient than the fragmented approach currently in use in SA.

In the 21st century information age, Africa's governments and organisations have trailed the rest of the world by a colossal margin.

The integration of technology by African governments has been gradual and, in many instances, has failed to get off the ground.

At a press briefing yesterday, senior public servants of the Provincial Government of the Western Cape, led by premier Helen Zille, outlined their blueprint for modernising the way the provincial government is structured and the way it conducts business.

However, as a practical issue, it is something which may take years to be operational unless our government becomes an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) savvy.

The company that will manage the network, BWired, was unveiled in Soweto this afternoon. Speaking at the event, City of Johannesburg's (COJ) councillor Oupa Monareng said getting the project off the ground has been five years in the making, and will be used to develop the COJ into a world-class digital city.

Education had a light-hearted sidekick when the City’s corporate geo-informatics (CGIS) directorate hosted the annual GIS Day at the Metro Centre in Braamfontein.

CGIS used the global event, on 17 November, as an exciting way of teaching the public about what it does and how it does it. CGIS staff and their offices were dressed up according to the theme, which was “Four seasons … all year round”. Each season represented a specific area of expertise within the department.

Some high profile government representatives were at the launch, held at the Arthur Ashe Sports Complex in Jabavu, Soweto.

The company was formed after Ericsson South Africa was chosen to partner the city in its billion rand Joburg Broadband Network Project (JBNP) in February 2009, and is set to provide voice and data communications throughout the city.

UniNet chief executive office David Jarvis told ITWeb at the African WiFi Summit 2005 in Cape Town yesterday that his company had signed a contract, worth an initial R2.5 million, with the Southern Cape town.

Sixty-two municipal offices, up to a distance of 40kms of Knysna, will be linked. This will include substantial rural coverage, including that of many of the informal settlements that dot the landscape.

KwaZulu-Natal acting MEC for economic development and tourism, Ina Cronje, recently delivered an address highlighting the importance of technology in the province. While she said it was becoming increasingly important for politicians and policy-makers to perceive mobile broadband and mobile technologies as important tools to fight poverty and improve service delivery – these sentiments were not echoed in her budget allocations.

The group, referred to as the “Beyond Hackers Team” claims that they operate from Chile, South America.

Knowing well that they infiltrated South African Government websites, the hackers left the following message on the hacked sites: “South Africa Government Server... hohoho - pwned by byond crew!! – Chile”.

Addressing the media in the wake of the recent state of the province address, Gauteng finance and economic affairs MEC Paul Mashatile said the centre has “built an illustrious profile for itself as a pioneer of public sector innovation”.

She also officially opened a renal dialysis unit at the hospital on Monday.

The project will be the fourth of its kind in the province after three of the same kind were launched in Waterburg district a few years ago.

A significant number of service delivery initiatives in the public sector are now ICT-driven. As an organisation, MTN Business has been given the opportunity to assist government with solutions to connect with its citizens in various situations, using more cost-effective and efficient communication tools.

Higher spend on e-government would benefit people by streamlining revenue services, reducing the costs of interacting with ratepayers and improving service delivery.

Out of 14 surveyed, only one, the City of Johannesburg, has made significant progress. The survey was presented yesterday by Luci Abrahams, of the Wits LINK centre, at ITWeb's eGoverment Conference, at Emperors Palace, in Johannesburg. It is part of LOG-IN Africa, an emergent pan-African network of researchers and research institutions from nine countries.