Public service chief information officer (CIO) Luyanda Ndlovu has been seconded to the Universal Service and Access Agency of SA (USAASA), taking up the chief executive officer role in an acting capacity.
Ndlovu has been seconded from the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT), as the agency completes the process of appointing a permanent CEO, says a spokesperson.
According to USAASA, the new CEO began his acting role on 2 August.
“It is estimated that the appointment process of the new CEO should take approximately three months to reach its conclusion; as such, Mr Ndlovu's secondment will end upon the appointment of a CEO.”
Described as a seasoned CIO with over 19 years in the IT and information management field, USAASA says Ndlovu has led digital transformation in the health and public service, and administration sectors.
Until his secondment to USAASA, he served in various roles at the DCDT, including department CIO for seven years andacting deputy director-general: administrators, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Prior to that, he was at the Department of Public Service and Administration as director of information management and technology.
His profile also indicates he was deputy director for information, IT and records management: health and social development at St Rita’s Hospital in Limpopo.
Ndlovu holds a Master of Technology Degree in business information systems from the Tshwane University of Technology, as well as an MBA from Henley Business School in Reading in the UK. He is currently completing a PhD in Information Systems at the University of Cape Town, focusing on digital transformation.
USAASA, which falls under the DCDT, was established to help provide universal connectivity through government and private sector partnerships. It’s also been involved in SA's multibillion-rand digital TV set-top box rollout.
However, it has previously come under fire for failing to deliver, abuse of funds and low staff morale. In 2018, the Public Protector issued a damning report against USAASA’s board of directors following a complaint related to governance, abuse of power and malpractice.
Equally, the chief executive role at USAASA has previously been an area of contention.
Former CEO Zami Nkosi’s appointment was widely criticised following allegations that he was hired irregularly. The Special Investigating Unit investigated these allegations and called for Nkosi to leave his post. However, he stayed in his role until the then-DTPS did not renew his contract.
The agency has been without a permanent chief executive since the departure of Lumko Mtimde, who left after his employment contract expired in May 2019.
Following Mtimde’s exit, the CEO position has been occupied by executives in an acting capacity, including Sipho Mngqibisa and Dr Mashilo Boloka.
In January 2020, former DCDT minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams appointed Basil Ford as an administrator at the agency, meaning he was acting as CEO, while also fulfilling the role of the board.
There was controversy surrounding Ford’s appointment, but the DCDT stood firm on the USASSA administrator’s placement. USAASA confirmed to ITWeb that Ford left the agency in February 2021.
While it’s unclear who took over following Ford’s departure, the agency advertised for two key vacancies – CEO and CFO – in May 2021. The vacancies were noted as contract-based for a period of 18 months.
Up until May, Chwayita Madikizela was noted as the agency’s acting CEO on the DCDT’s X (formerly Twitter) social media page.
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