Free e-mail, hosting for SMEs

By Rodney Weidemann for DataPro
Johannesburg, 15 Dec 2004

DataPro has teamed up with the SMME Forum and the Universal Service Agency (USA) in an attempt to help bridge the digital divide.

From January, DataPro will provide free e-mail and Web site hosting to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that are forum members, while the forum will have free Internet connectivity through DataPro`s high-speed international network.

"The SMME Forum is an organisation dedicated to enabling the sustainable development of SMEs and as such we have engaged both the corporate and public sectors in order to maximise our ability to trade in a level playing field," says forum president Tebogo Khaas.

"The aim is to reach a point where the playing field is no longer just the preserve of the large or sophisticated enterprises."

He says that through this collaborative effort, maximum value can now be extracted from the USA`s telecentres countrywide and ensure access points are made available to all SMEs, particularly those in underserviced areas, while also ensuring the telecentres thrive as self-sustaining businesses.

"We are at the beginning of a journey that will deliver us to a plateau of opportunity and a place where the size of the business no longer matters," says Khaas.

Carine Conradie, group marketing manager at DataPro, says the company is supportive of a vibrant and expanding SME sector.

"Such businesses are essential to underpin sustainable economic growth in SA and we therefore want to provide assistance where we can to help them to grow and compete in a global marketplace."

According to Dr Sam Gulube, CEO of the USA, this collaboration will be good for all South Africans.

"Presently, only 10% of the country has access to the Internet, but we are committed to improving access to the Internet for all, as this is the way forward for a better life for all," he says.

"Of course we need to remember that nothing is free - there is always somebody who has to pay and we are grateful that DataPro has chosen to take the bull by the horns and make this generous contribution to furthering the development of small business."