Hon Chairperson; hon Minister Dina Pule; hon Deputy Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams; hon members; distinguished guests and the public at large, my speech will be based on digital migration, broadband roll-out and the importance of discussing cyber crime. Let me join my colleagues in paying tribute to our son Vuyo Mbuli in his passing away on Sunday. Akuhlanga lungehlanga. [Condolences to his family.]
I also want to say I am so surprised by the pretence demonstrated here by hon Killian when she said that she is speaking on behalf of the people when she has never even gone on oversight visits with this committee. [Applause.]
The importance of this Budget Vote must be analysed and debated in the context of the fundamental and deep-seated advances made by the ANC government in transforming the South African IT landscape. Any other analysis or politically expedient positioning in the short term will not serve the purpose of what the Extended Public Committee debates are called upon to do. It has made great strides to communicate with citizens in a transparent and accountable manner through a whole range of mechanisms, including quarterly and annual reports, parliamentary programmes, regular Cabinet briefings, online publications, etc. Its ability to communicate with citizens is critical in the delivery of services as it deepens democracy and allows citizens to interact with government. The ANC identified the need for a coherent framework and an institutional arrangement that enhances collaboration, effective planning and oversight within government communication.
The need to strengthen other effective communication methods to reach targeted communities like community broadcasting and public broadcasting services to highlight government service delivery in the battle of ideas is critical. Weaknesses in the area of government communications are one of the factors behind the ideological onslaught, misinformation and the general lack of awareness on the progress achieved since the advent of democracy.
The media continues to have the tendency to publish mainly negative news on the ANC government, disregarding the good service delivery record of government. The media continues to distort and ignore information provided by the ANC government in a transparent and accountable manner. The phase of globalisation, especially over the past three decades, has been driven by economics and ICT. It has at the same time sharpened inequalities between and within communities. Since the advent of democracy in 1994, South Africa has made significant strides to facilitate the transformation of the ICT industry. However, in recent years we have lagged behind in a number of key global ICT indicators, especially on universal access to the Internet, broadcasting and e-governance.
Although the ANC government has made advancements through codes and the reform of the Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act, PPPFA, and the black economic empowerment, BEE, policy, the transformation of the ICT sector remains weak due to some contradictions in underlying statutes. Despite the consistent growth of the ICT market, patterns of ownership and participation by black-owned and emerging companies is minimal and requires support from the government to speed up the pace of transformation.
There should be local manufacturing of ICT products for domestic consumption and exports, and government ICT procurement should benefit South African companies, including small, medium and micro enterprises, SMMEs. ICT is a critical enabler of economic activity in an increasingly networked world. It is critical for South Africa to remain globally competitive. The sector needs long-term policy certainty to be in a position to take the country into the next trajectory. This applies to entities in which the state owns shares, such as Telkom. As we argued in the policy discussion document on state-owned entities, SOEs, to the 53rd national conference, we need to ensure that we derive maximum value from the competencies that lie within these entities.
The third National General Council of the ANC in September 2010 pronounced that e-skills should become a compulsory subject in all public schools to promote an e-literate society. It recommended that the curriculum should focus on end-user computing as well as encouraging young people to pursue careers in the ICT sector. We can proudly say that good progress on this has been made with the assistance of the department, targeting identified schools in need both with infrastructure and equipment.
The Mangaung conference of the ANC in 2012 resolved that further education and training, FET, colleges should be used as schools of excellence to create opportunities for out-of-school and unemployed youth. A dedicated funding plan is needed to ensure that rural universities and FET colleges can contribute to the new e-skills revolution. The National Skills Fund must prioritise ICT skills development. Media and ICT studies should also be made available in all provinces using existing tertiary institutions and further education and training institutions.
Hon Chairperson, regarding digital migration, the international policy discourse plays an important role in shaping how we interact with a converged global environment while maintaining the sovereignty of our country. We acknowledge that the international affairs branch of the department has positioned the country in the ICT space. Contributing to global technological advancement is important for the ANC and South Africa. Hence we take on certain commitments with the rest of the world to ensure that the country and its citizens stay relevant.
The digital migration process is influenced by a global agenda, specifically the International Telecommunications Union, ITU, to which South Africa is a signatory. As a member of the Southern African Development Community, SADC, the ANC government was a signatory to a roadmap for a regional digital switchover. The reason for such an approach is mainly to provide a framework for the political support and industry co- operation as the basis for policy harmonisation and technical standards. The migration is necessitated by, among others things, the need to strategically embrace technological developments, efficient utilisation of national resources such as energy and spectrum, and empowering governments to interactively engage with citizens.
More importantly, digital migration will widen the number of radio and television broadcasting programmes offered to citizens. It will further improve quality, accessibility and localised services delivered to citizens. To the ANC government the important matter is to ensure that the policy and regulatory environments are well positioned to deal with this necessary migration in a manner that positively responds to local challenges and regional commitments. The production of innovative solutions to produce local content should be underpinned by the need to protect, promote and preserve our cultural diversity, heritage and indigenous knowledge; and the role of the public broadcaster will become even more important in this respect. Despite the recent delays in the implementation of this programme, the ANC believes that the timelines are still achievable. As members of the Portfolio Committee on Communications, we are committed to ensuring that the department responds timeously to Parliament on all developments in the digital terrestrial television, DTT, programme.
The regulator of the sector requires strengthening in order to guarantee benefits to the citizens. The NDP identifies the regulator as a key organ geared for reform in order to ensure it adapts to change, and the PCC will provide the necessary support so the regulator achieves its mandate. The NDP further sees the creative sector as a key to both growth and job creation and critical for facilitating dialogue and nation-building. Benefits of digital migration mean more frequency spectrum will be free, resulting in the licensing of further communications services such as mobile television, high definition TV, public emergency services and additional standard definition TV.
Regarding broadband, Chairperson, Internet access has evolved from just being an accessory to being a necessity driven by the knowledge economy ideology. The use of the Internet is critical to resolving some of the key challenges faced by the ruling party, such as the education system, distance education, health backlogs, telemedicine, egovernment challenges, service delivery, e-commerce and poverty alleviation, and improving the quality of life. Information demand necessitates a robust network infrastructure to be able to handle the demand. This lies in the intricate manner in which ICTs are harnessed in order to yield positive results, and the National Development Plan, NDP, is explicit on this matter.
Educational material can be delivered electronically to remote villagers. However, successful ICT-based health and educational programmes of the ANC- led government will demand ... The ANC supports Budget Vote No 27. [Time expired.] [Applause.]