Following requests from several stakeholders, the Department of Communications has extended the deadline for submissions on the National Integrated ICT Policy Green Paper from 24 February to 24 March.
National Public Hearings on the Green Paper will be held on 4 March, and will be followed by provincial public hearings, the department adds.
Since 1994, three White Papers and one Green Paper have been produced by the department. The National Integrated ICT Policy Green Paper is the first policy review since the Green Paper on e-Commerce in 1999.
“The ICT sector moves very fast,” says Minister of Communications, Yunus Carrim. “There have been dramatic changes since our last policy reviews over 15 years ago. Previously, we regulated telecommunications, broadcasting and postal services separately, in a silo fashion. But the convergence of technologies has since blurred the boundaries between the sectors.
“The same infrastructure can now be used to deliver voice, video and data. Different services can now be received using the same devices. Clearly, we need new policies and legislation.”
Over the past few years, markets have changed with the entry of new players, major technological developments have occurred and new thinking on how services can be delivered and used has emerged.
Among the issues considered in the latest Green Paper are telecommunications; broadcasting; postal services; e-services, including e-government and e-commerce; cyber-security; e-literacy; and universal access and service.
“The growth of the ICT sector is crucial to our economic growth, development and job-creation goals,” Carrim says.
“The Green Paper is aimed at encouraging the widest possible discussion among the stakeholders and the public generally on how we can significantly develop the ICT sector to ensure that South Africa becomes a more effective knowledge economy and information society in this increasingly digital age.
“We urge people to take part in the public hearings,” he adds.
The department says those wishing to take part in the Green Paper public hearings should contact mameetse@doc.gov.za.
