The South African government is the primary user of technology in the country, accounting for some 60% of the nation's total IT spend.
Given the demands placed on government for service delivery, one should expect this trend to continue as IT plays a role of ever-increasing importance in the nation.
The solutions being built and delivered, however, are not dependent only on government and its IT arm SITA (State Information Technology Agency), but are created and rolled out in cooperation with the private sector. To facilitate a better conversation between these parties, SITA will be hosting the second annual GovTech conference from 21 to 23 August at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.
SITA's goal in running GovTech, according to Noedine Isaacs-Mpulo, SITA's chief of business operations, is to provide a forum in which thought leaders and decision makers in government and industry can discuss how ICT can help government deliver better services to the nation. And as the only IT in government conference run by government, for government, attendees will find GovTech a focused, issues-driven conference designed to generate ideas and debate.
GovTech 2007 is themed Transformation Through Technology Together. Isaacs-Mpulo explains this theme underscores "our drive to forge strong strategic partnerships with industry to drive government's transformation and public service delivery objectives. Information will be exchanged through presentations, case studies, workshops, tutorials and in networking opportunities at the conference".
With the 2010 Soccer World Cup around the corner, some discussion at GovTech will obviously be around issues this raises. For example, disaster management and how to extend the services that will have to be delivered for the World Cup further into citizens' everyday lives will be on the agenda.
Keeping the momentum started in 2006 going, a visit from the CIO of the UK government has also been arranged, among other influential IT personalities from the South Africa and international organisations. These visitors will be presenting their insights into relevant topics, such as e-government initiatives, in the form of presentations and case studies. Some of the other people who have been confirmed include entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth and the chairman of Icasa - and that is just the start.
Solutions centre
GovTech is not only going to consist of presentations and discussions, but will also have an exhibition area where technical solutions will be on display. From smartcard demonstrations to RFID solutions, delegates will be able to gain hands-on experience to complement their theoretical knowledge.
Not only will the conference's primary sponsors be exhibiting, but a government pavilion has been organised in which various departments will be able to demonstrate solutions they have implemented. Other countries, such as Brazil and India, will also be exhibiting.
An SME Boulevard has also been planned to allow smaller companies to demonstrate their solutions. This will allow local companies without the marketing punch of large international vendors to gain exposure to decision makers in the hope that South Africa's own software community can play a greater role in government.
"The primary message we want to get out about GovTech 2007 is that this is not a selling opportunity, but will be a chance for interaction and information exchange at a strategic level," adds Isaacs-Mpulo. "GovTech 2007 aims to facilitate the discovery and adoption of technologies that can align public service delivery with policy outcomes. It will do this by addressing specific government issues and challenges, as well as presenting new, practical solutions developed to solve the technological challenges of the public sector."
GovTech 2007 will be run from 21 to 23 August at the International Convention Centre in Cape Town. The number of delegates will be limited to a maximum of 1500.
For details contact State Information Technology Agency, +27 (0)12 482 3000, [email protected], www.sita.co.za
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