As we moved to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s investment summit on the back of the jobs summit held last month, the department of telecommunications & postal services has been soliciting the views of information and communications technology (ICT) sector stakeholders on how the sector can contribute to a more positive investment environment, thereby stimulating much-needed economic growth and job creation in the context of the fourth industrial revolution.
My first response to this challenge is that while there are sector-specific issues that affect national investment – and which I will flag below – if SA is to make any progress towards future-proofing the economy and its citizens, it has to move beyond understanding digitalisation as only a sectoral issue. …..more