Mavuso Msimang, CEO of the State IT Agency (SITA), has clarified the group`s position about private sector partners, and has emphasised that no companies have been selected to partner the agency or that any preferred partners have been identified.
Msimang was reacting to statements made by newly-appointed SITA COO Noedine Isaacs-Mpulo, who told ITWeb earlier this week that Business Connexion, Dimension Data, IBM, GijimaAst and SAP have been earmarked as key private sector partners.
"This has created the wrong impression. There are no agreements with any companies yet, so it`s not right to say that anyone has been selected as a key partner," Msimang says.
He explains that SITA`s new consultation process calls for a change in the way the company engages with the private sector, which means it will enter into discussions with companies about the various modalities that can be followed for partnerships, such as joint ventures or private-public partnerships.
Msimang says SITA has indeed been in discussion with GijimaAst and Dimension Data, and is planning to hold discussions with Business Connexion with a few weeks. However, these are only some of the companies that will be approached.
"We will be talking to everyone. We have embarked on consultations with industry players, but there are no specific relationships. These are simply discussions to see how we can form partnerships."
The perception that a list of partners already exists and that other companies can join this list is completely false, Msimang states.
He comments that the new private sector engagement model calls for SITA to harness the resources of private companies to buy assets for involvement in projects.
"We must deliver a quality service that, at the same time, is cost-effective," he adds.
Msimang also points out that whereas Isaacs-Mpulo`s comments generated much reaction and concern from industry players, his statements are by no means indicative of an about-face by SITA, but simply a clarification of the group`s policy.
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