GOVERNMENT departments have been among the biggest beneficiaries of the intensive drive to create a digital economy through improved access to Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) with more than 4200 computers having been given out, an official has said.
Postal and Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (Potraz) Director-General Dr Gift Machengete told Sunday News in an interview that more than 4 282 computers have been distributed to various departments and ministries as the drive towards engendering socio- economic transformation gathers pace.
He said improving access to ICTs was one of the key pillars of the National Development Strategy (NDS 1) which was one of the many important steps signposting the attainment of an upper middle-income society by 2030.
“More than 4 282 computers have been distributed by Potraz. We have set up labs in more than 186 schools with 30 computers each including institutions of higher learning like universities and colleges.
“This year alone we have set up 45 school laboratories and we expect to surpass 400 by year end. This means that both the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education as well as the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development have benefitted. A total of 1117 schools have been connected with Internet,” said Dr Machengete.
The ICT infrastructure distribution and connectivity at Government departments will ensure the general public accesses improved service delivery in line with the global trends of digital economies.
“However, we cannot say schools and tertiary institutions have been the biggest beneficiaries. Connectivity and ICT infrastructure distribution has been cascading to other departments and ministries. At least 352 police stations have been connected with Internet while the Ministry of Health has also benefitted connectivity with 1 355 clinics connected countrywide,” said Dr Machengete.
Potraz has also established 170 Community Information Centres (CICs) countrywide to achieve equitable access to information and bridge the digital divide between urban and rural communities.
“Our aim is to have ubiquitous connectivity across the country. This is to ensure that by year 2030 we have a digitalised economy and we can only get there by use of technology. We have finished refurbishing Post Offices and transforming them into Community Information Centres and now we are building these from scratch.
“In the quest to have pervasive connectivity, we have made sure that we reach out to all areas of the country. Those that might be following will know that as Potraz we have reached out to the most remote areas of Chiredzi, Manicaland, Matabeleland South and North and our objective is to get to all the corners of the country,” said Dr Machengete.
He said rural communities had limited access to the Internet and the establishment of CICs would see people in the rural areas having free access to the Internet.
According to the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology website, more than 1 800 citizens and civil servants have been trained in ICTs use resulting in an improved ICT literacy rate to 60.0 percent.
Continued investment in ICTs is also complementing Government efforts with a total of US$8 million having been invested in fibre infrastructure across the country recently.
This was announced by Dandemutande – an ICT solutions provider after an agreement with Fiber Connections, a subsidiary of Bandwidth and Cloud Services Group (BCS Group). – Sunday News
