Earlier this week, Finance minister, Pravin Gordhan, revealed that government would reduce e-tolling fees for motorists by paying off R5.8 billion of the R20 billion the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) owed through the project.

Expected to kick-off on 30 April, government has now announced further reductions in e-tolling fees. Light vehicles with an e-tag can expect to pay 30c per km, while motorcycles will be charged 20c per km.

Without an e-tag drivers of light motor vehicles can expect to pay 58c per km, while motorcycles will be charged 38c per km.

According to government, costs for motorcycles and light vehicles will be capped at R550 per month.

The new fares will also see non-articulated trucks pay 75c per km with an e-tag and R1.45 without one. Articulated trucks will pay R1.51 per km with an e-tag and R2.90 without one.

Last year, Cabinet approved prices which would have seen drivers of light motor vehicles pay 40c per km, with prices for medium vehicles starting at 100c per km and 200c per km for longer vehicles. Motorcycles would pay 24c per km while qualifying commuter taxis and buses will be exempt from fare charges.

Cabinet also announced that savings of 20% for heavy vehicles to deal with concerns of freight industry will also be introduced for travel during certain times of the day.

“This allows for lower toll fees for off peak times to reduce congestion during peak hours and reduce the economic impact of the toll fees for consumers,” Cabinet stated.

Commuter public transport (taxis and buses) are exempted from the e-toll.

Govt cuts e-tolling prices is a post from: SAITNEWS

Speaking during his budget speech, Finance minister, Pravin Gordhan, revealed that government would make a special appropriation of R5.8 billion to the project.

“This will reduce the debt to be repaid through the toll system, and will make a steeper discount possible for regular road users,” said Gordhan.

Last year, Cabinet approved prices which would have seen drivers of light motor vehicles pay 40c per km, with prices for medium vehicles starting at 100c per km and 200c per km for longer vehicles.

Motorcycles would pay 24c per km while qualifying commuter taxis and buses will be exempt from fare charges.

Despite concerns from motorists, Cabinet noted that it was satisfied with the e-tag discount – 31% of the tag tariff – and other discounts which would be available to motorists.

While noting that concerns raised by motorists were important, Gordhan emphasised that the user-pay principle was no longer up for debate.

“It is important to remember that road-user charges also serve an important demand management function on roads that are heavily congested. Users benefit through lower vehicle operating costs, time savings and improved safety. In addition, improved maintenance of regional and provincial roads is made possible by the additional revenue that our toll roads generate,” he said.

The agency kicked off the registration and distribution of e-tags for Phase-1 of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) in November last year – weeks after the Department of Transport of Department (DOT) halted progress on any future tolling projects.

He added that going forward, government will carefully evaluate future road infrastructure funding. In addition, the further development of efficient and cost-effective public transport systems will receive the urgent attention of the Department of Transport.

Talks on the highly contested Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) tariff structure started with public consultations and engagements earlier this year.

The GFIP is an initiative which will lead to the upgrade or construction of approximately 500 kms or road around the Tshwane, Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni metros. Introduced in a phased plan and design approach, the project will introduce and open road tolling system which will electronically charge drivers per kilometre as they pass gantries erected across designated toll roads.

The system allows for tolls to be automatically charged without vehicles stopping or slowing down. When the vehicle enters the toll area, the electronic equipment will photograph the front and rear number plate, read the e-tag on the vehicle, verify the tag if is linked to the specific vehicle and have an account linked to it.

Govt puts in R5.8bn to cut e-tolling costs is a post from: SAITNEWS

Since 31 of January 2012, the hotline logged a total number of 122,589 calls nationwide with the overall case resolution rate standing at 79.89%.

“This is a major improvement since 2009, when the resolution rate was at 39%,” says the Department of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME).

The hotline was first introduced in September 2009 and registered over 4000 valid queries within the first week of operation.  Introduced as a communication platform for citizens, the Presidency noted that its introduction was long overdue.

According to the DPME, on average, it takes 67 working days to resolve a matter that has been recorded with the hotline. However, there are queries which require immediate response such as request for information on government services.

“To ensure that the hotline operates optimally we will in June this year, increase the number of call agents from 20 to 30. This will see an increase to 15 agents per shift operating on two shifts a day,” the departmnent revealed.

According to the department, the hotline’s success can be attributed to better coordination at Directors-General and senior management level of government. The hotline responsiveness reports have been regularised on the agenda of Forum of South African Directors-General. In addition, the hotline reports are now on Cabinet agenda periodically.

The department also revealed that it is now using the hotline as a source of information to inform its unannounced Front Line Service Delivery Monitoring visits. The DPME is also in the process of engaging with the management of departments and municipalities with high volumes of cases, with a view to both improve responsiveness and assisting them to use the information to inform service delivery improvements.

“We are gradually making progress and living up to President Jacob Zuma‘s promise that citizens will have a platform to communicate with government and get assistance they deserve. As we have begun with our frontline service delivery monitoring the hotline provides us with good data on which areas needs immediate attention and we will respond,” says minister in the Presidency Collins Chabane.

The Presidency adds it is aware that there are still a number of citizens which are awaiting responses and while achievements are celebrated – more should be done to achieve 100% call resolution rate.

80% resolution rate for Presidential hotline is a post from: SAITNEWS

vodacom

This follows the operators introduction of its local app store in September last year with the intention of developing the local industry while creating jobs and income opportunities.

“The Vodacom App Store itself is booming and has exceeded all expectations. We’re thrilled that we’ve hit one million downloads in less than six months of launch.  But the real challenge has been to realise the ambition of kick-starting an entirely new industry in South Africa. We had to find a way to support and nurture talent and also celebrate the success stories,” said , Prins Mhlanga, managing executive of Digital Media at Vodacom.

In order to start the process of harnessing local talent, the Vodacom Developer Program commenced in October last year and included a series of initiatives such as the App Star Challenge which is a competition aimed at providing developers with the opportunity to develop local apps.

“We couldn’t just set a challenge without giving the contestants a platform, incentives and support required for developers to focus on the task of creating some truly unique apps.”

The winners of The App Star Challenge were announced at the awards ceremony held at Vodacom World recently.

Vodacom says it will continue to provide incentives to the local developers or Mobile App entrepreneurs through the monthly App contests which are currently running and will end on 31 July 2012. During this period, Vodacom will recognise the developers with the coolest App of the month and the popular App with most downloads. 

“We’re truly delighted with the success of the App Star Challenge. We have seen great local talent come to the fore and we’re excited about the income opportunities that lie ahead for the developers,” Mhlanga concluded.  

Vodacom app store grows is a post from: SAITNEWS

The e-tolling system in Gauteng was due to commence in February but it was placed on hold so that the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) could address the concerns and issues raised by the public in petitions submitted to the minister against the system.

At the time, SANRAL said it was exploring different modalities which it would present to Finance minister, Pravin Gordhan – who would in turn present it to Cabinet.

During her state of the province address Mokonyane said that she had been consulted about the latest proposal by the team headed up by the Finance minister. She said the proposal was expected to be announced soon.

She also said she is hopeful that Gauteng residents would understand that an investment had been made and what was due had to be paid.

“The most important thing is that we are committed to finding a solution that does not expose the integrity of the country.”

There  have been a lot of critics  from both  COSATU  and  the public regarding  the tolls  and the premier says they have been noted. 

“Concerns regarding e-tolling had been noted and government was quite certain that it had found a solution in the best interest of the country and its people,” she added.

Many Gauteng motorists had threatened to boycott the entire tolling system by refusing to pay the fees or register for their e-toll accounts to get their e-tags. Numerous petitions against the system were circulated to have the system halted.

Cosatu have been mostly vocal against the proposed toll even arguing motorist to boycott it and calling for it to be totally scrapped. When it was delayed earlier this year Cosatu welcomed the decision.

Gauteng “hopeful” for e-tolling solution is a post from: SAITNEWS

Speaking during her state of the province address, premier Nomvula Mokonyane revealed that the work currently underway seeks to roll out network infrastructure between 2012 and 2014.

Mokonyane also revealed that as part of its ICT strategy, the province would develop a smart city as it searches for ways to bridge the digital divide.

“We are happy to announce that we will be partnering with the national Department of Communication and City of Johannesburg to develop a Smart City at Nasrec in Johannesburg.  This is a multi-disciplinary ICT development that aims to create sustainable economic activities through the use of ICT to improve the quality of life and decrease the cost of ICT,” she revealed.

In September last year, the Gauteng Department of Economic Development submitted an innovation strategy which highlighted the role of the ICT strategy in innovation.

According to the submission, one of the key ideas within the Gauteng ICT strategy is for households to have access to high-speed internet connections.

While the ICT strategy had not been completed at that point, the innovation document noted that additional communication and social networking structures would be investigated.

The provincial government has also adopted the G-Link  project as key to enhancing the ICT infrastructure in the province, improving service delivery, creating jobs and saving costs.

The G-Link programme, which aims to provide infrastructure for ICT and broadband capacity for internet connectivity in the province was transferred from Blue IQ to the Gauteng Shared Services Centre (GSSC) in the 2008/09 financial year.

The project, also known as Blue Umbrella, was first announced by former Gauteng premier, Mbhazima Shilowa in 2008.

Push for Gauteng broadband is a post from: SAITNEWS

Roy Padayachie

Speaking during a briefing by the Governance and Administration cluster – Public Service and Administration minister, Roy Padayachie, revealed that government had plans on expanding the network as it finds ways of dealing with deficiencies in its connected ICT systems.

“We are looking at creating the infrastructure for connected government across the various levels. Programmes on e-government, and what we now define as m-government (mobility government), an ability to take government to where the people are, is quite critical to the dispensation of services,” Padayachie explained.

Last year, the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) revealed it had developed a blueprint to connect Thusong Service Centres – with 80% of existing centres connected by March 2011. The State Information Technology Agency (SITA) would also deploy satellite connectivity to the centres.

The Thusong Service Centres (formerly Multi-Purpose Community Centres) were initiated in 1999 as a primary vehicle for the implementation of development communication and information, to integrate government services into primarily-rural communities.

The GCIS revealed that centres service close to 5 million citizens and that 165 centres were operational around the country. Over 999 government employees were trained to serve in the centres while over 40 mobile units had been linked to the network.

“The thrust is therefore to lay the institutional framework for connected governance and to enable us to move more swiftly and decisively towards a single public service, something we are committed to in this year,” Padayachie explained.

Govt to focus on connecting Thusong centres is a post from: SAITNEWS

Internet

Within the next two years, as part of a pilot project, the provincial government aims to create the largest mesh network in the world that will have connected all households in Khayelitsha, Mitchell’s Plain and Saldanha Bay, including the Industrial Development Zone footprint.

“We need to link over 4,000 government facilities in the province to one another and to business, civil society and citizens. By 2014 we aim to have connected 70% of government facilities and every school in the province to the broadband network and also ensure that there is at least one public ICT access facility in every ward,” Zille revealed.

Zille revealed the provincial government was looking at creating a Special Purpose Vehicle or Public Private Partnership to bring broadband access to every school,  provincial and municipal offices and eventually every citizen.

“By 2020, we aim to have connected every citizen in the metropolitan area to affordable broadband infrastructure at network speeds in excess of 100 Megabytes per second and all citizens in towns and villages to a broadband network,” said Zille.

Zille says It is clear that if they aim to create an internationally competitive knowledge economy, improve productivity and enjoy access to new markets, they need to invest far more in fast and affordable broadband infrastructure.

 “Our broadband strategy will involve partnerships with a number of potential stakeholders, including licensed telecom service providers, commercial banks, the IDC and the DBSA, local businesses as well as local and national government. In other words, the roll-out of this broadband network exemplifies our “Better Together” approach.”

“This is a huge new development that will position the Western Cape as a broadband access leader in South Africa, and support the existing Information Technology Centres in every school in the Province. As I indicated last year during my State of the Province Address, the World Bank estimates that every 10% increase in high-speed Internet connections in developing countries results in a 1.3% increase in economic growth,” she said during her state of the province address.

 Zille says broadband is also a platform for local IT services industries, which create youth employment, and promote social inclusion.

Furthermore, Zille says is also true that since 2009, South Africa has lagged behind many other African countries when it comes to increasing internet penetration.

For  example she says , while Nigeria and Egypt had increased their internet users by 33 million and 8 million respectively over the last two years, SA has only increased its users by 2.3 million.

Zille says few government properties have adequate speeds.

“To compound the problem in the Western Cape, only 20 provincial government buildings, around 50 City of Cape Town buildings and 50 municipal sites are connected at speeds of 100 Megabytes per second or more,” Zille noted.

Western Cape to connect every citizen by 2020 is a post from: SAITNEWS

In addition, it said that the finalisation of specific cyber-crime plans would be its objective for this year.

Leading the cluster, Justice and Constitutional Development minister, Jeff Radebe, said that  police have put in place operational measures to help manage cyber-crime.

He indicated that several cases had been prosecuted by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) while others were under investigation.

“The reduction in cyber-crime is, however, interdependent and multi-faceted. It requires the intervention of parents in monitoring their children’s online activities in order to ensure that they do not become victims of human and drug trafficking as well as other abuses.”

He said that the increased access to cyberspace had resulted in improved networking and instant communication through the use of social networking sites.

“Due to their popularity and instant nature, they have an undesired consequence in that they tools and platforms that accelerate criminal activities,” he said.

Radebe said that the need for everyone using a cellphone to register their SIM card with the Regulation of Interception of Communication Act (RICA) was one of the ways meant to combat cyber-crime.

He said that to date, about 37 million SIM cards had been registered in accordance with the new legislation.

“This will reduce the possibility for criminals using cyber technology to plan and execute crime. In this way, we seek to increase the chances of their detection and enhance the quality of evidence which we will present before the courts during trial,” he said.

The minister indicated that the cluster, led by the police, had already begun to intensify cooperation with police services in the region and with Interpol to fight crime syndicates including cyber criminals. He said they were aware of the urgent need to up skill investigators and detectives in order to win the war against crime.

Meanwhile, the Department of Home Affairs has begun re-orientating itself towards ensuring an optimal balance between its security imperative and service delivery. Substantial service delivery improvements, amongst which are increased efficiency levels and the management of key processes, especially in the civic environment (improved turnaround of IDs and passports), have been noted.

In addition, the Department has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the banking industry, through the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC), to roll out the online fingerprint verification system in all participating banks.

“The implementation of this system will enable the banks to verify details of their clients with the Department, through the Home Affairs National Identification System (HANIS).

“In this way, it will help protect South Africans against identity theft and fraud as well as the attendant corruption. It will at the same time mitigate the loss suffered by the banks and their clients,” said Radebe.

Govt to table cyber security policy is a post from: SAITNEWS

Speaking in his response to the debate on the state of the nation address, Zuma also revealed that as of 15 December 2011, the call centre had answered in excess of 25 000 calls.

The hotline was first introduced in September 2009 and registered over 4000 valid queries within the first week of operation.  Introduced as a communication platform for citizens, the Presidency noted that its introduction was long overdue.

 The hotline was originally allocated a budget of R4 million. Additional allocations of R7.6 million were made – however the initial IT allocation of R1.7 million was not increased.

Last year, the Department of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation revealed that an additional R16.254 million has been allocated for the payment of service providers and the operational expenditure for the Presidential Hotline. Another R4.026 million will also be received from the Presidency for the function hotline

“We continue to monitor the performance of the call centre to ensure continuous improvement,” Zuma stated.

In September last year, the Presidency announced that the hotline had received 111 751 valid queries, since it was first introduced. Of these queries, 84 700 of the cases had been attended to and resolved.

The public use 17737 which is a toll free number for the Presidential Hotline. All calls to this number are answered at SITA which is the first point of contact. Valid cases are logged into a system and given a reference number.

Hotline helps pay R270m to SMEs is a post from: SAITNEWS