GovTech targets 'overambitious'

By Damaria Senne for SITA
Johannesburg, 06 Aug 2007

The State IT Agency (SITA) underestimated the scope of work set out at the GovTech 2006 conference, in Sun City, last year, it says.

Speaking at a media briefing in the lead-up to GovTech 2007, SITA chief of business operations Noedine Isaacs-Mpulo said the government agency is on track to meet the e-government goals set at GovTech 2006. However, the agency did not meet some of the deadlines set in the work plan.

"We underestimated the size of the job and the goals set were too ambitious. But SITA is still working on the issues in a sustainable fashion."

Last year, Jonas Bogoshi, then chief of strategic services, admitted SITA failed to deliver on its e-government strategy. "If we assume that e-government is about transforming and rethinking government, then we have not done a good job. We have to rethink how we approach e-government."

At last year's event, SITA set out action plans, which included a revised e-government strategy by February 2007, a draft ICT procurement model by April 2007 and a partnership engagement model by June 2007.

The state agency also undertook to identify and launch five projects within five government departments that can stimulate open source software implementation in government.

Progress to date

Isaacs-Mpulo says SITA is conducting research to find out what citizens want from government to guide the e-government strategy. The report is due by the end of August, she says. SITA will host a workshop in e-government strategy for the ICT industry by the end of August.

The state agency will also host industry days on the Integrated Justice System on 25 and 26 September, she says.

Six open source initiatives have been identified and are in various stages of implementation within government departments, she adds.

Isaacs-Mpulo notes the draft ICT procurement strategy has been completed and presented for review. The draft disaster management strategy for 2010 has also been completed.

This year's agenda

Isaacs-Mpulo says this year's GovTech conference will focus on the role ICT can play to make SA globally competitive. GovTech 2007 is scheduled to take place at the Cape Town Convention Centre, from 21 to 23 August.

SITA expects a large number of participants to attend the event, especially in view of the huge interest the conference generated last year, she says. More than 1 000 participants took part in the conference last year, with a 60:40 split in favour of the ICT industry. This year, SITA took measures to increase the number of government delegates, she adds.

Real issues

Isaacs-Mpulo says the conference will look, unflinchingly, at SITA's and government's challenges when using ICT to deliver services to citizens. "We're not planning a talk-shop; we're trying to achieve a continuous dialogue with the ICT industry."

The more uncomfortable issues that plague SITA include its high vacancy rate, and the fact that the agency failed to appoint a CEO even though it was known for a long while that Mavuso Msimang was leaving his post.

Isaacs-Mpulo was unable to confirm if SITA will have appointed a CEO by the time GovTech rolls around. The process now rests with Department of Public Service and Administration minister Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, she says. "Like everyone else, we all hope the appointment will happen as soon as possible."

However, she argues that the whole South African ICT sector has an acute skills shortage and SITA is no better or worse off.