Programme Director
Dignitaries present
Ladies and gentlemen
All protocol observed
It gives us pleasure to be part of this wonderful occasion where we are meeting with all the stakeholders involved in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector to look at ways of how collectively we can harness the power of technology to ensure that the dream of a better life for all of our people is realised.
Programme Director, for as long as human beings have existed, technology has been the engine that has powered human progress into the unchattered heights of inventions. Not only has technology ensured that our lives are better, but it has become a key factor in contributing to economic growth of our economies. While scholars differ on the meaning of the word technology, however they agree that this term refers to the: “Current state of humanity's knowledge of how to combine resources to produce desired products, to solve problems, fulfill needs, or satisfy wants; it includes technical methods, skills, processes, techniques, tools and raw materials”.
Programme Director, it has been this endless search for ways of improving our lives that has made modern life so different from the Stone Age. This insatiable quest for knowledge and the constant questioning of the world has not only spawned some of the greatest inventions which have changed the course of humanity as we know it, but has propelled us into the new age of information, and the proverbial global village.
But such have been the achievements of human beings in churning out new technology that a question on what is the single most important invention by mankind is bound to elicit a fascinating collection of answers as many as the technological inventions themselves.
While human progress has always been inspired by the unquenchable desire to push the boundaries of information and knowledge from the industrial revolution, technology and innovation have been key factors which have affected all aspects of human existence and the evolution of mankind. But more importantly it has played a critical role in driving economic growth.
As one scholar noted, in the knowledge economy, information circulates at the international level through trade in goods and services, direct investment and technology flows, and the movement of people.
In this regard, ICT have been at the heart of economic changes for decades. Multi-nationals use ICT to organise transnational networks in response to international competition and the increasing need for strategic interaction.
As a result, the scholar noted, the power of economic competitiveness of a country depends on the productivity of its ICT sector. Indeed, Programme Director, there is a corresponding relation between the economic progress of all the countries and their technological inventions.
Invariably, all the countries which have made tremendous progress in technological innovations have also done well in their economic progress. Others, we cannot mention, have simple excelled in the art of copying other countries inventions. Whether this is morally correct or not is a moot point.
Given this, the question that we need to answer as we gather here today is how, as a developing country, we can use the power of technology to deal with all challenges facing our countries such as underdevelopment and all the social ills afflicting our people.
In answering this question, we think we can take a leaf out of the book of India, which is a developing country which has done wonders in harnessing the power of technology and using technology to deal with challenges that are unique to the country.
Not only is India a shining example of what a developing country can achieve on the technological arena, but it has shown that technology can be used even on the most mundane and day to day activities to improve the lives of the people in their localities. We believe that this is the biggest example we can learn from the country.
Programme Director, the reality is that the world economic order is rapidly changing and technology is playing a key role in fostering that change. Not only has technology propelled the world into its highest era of human invention but it has created the proverbial global village and this particular individual who owes no allegiance to a particular country but to his or her wealth which he or she can follow to all the corners of the globe.
Just recently, a huge event of significant proportions happened while the world quietly moved on with most of the people not paying notice. China, the world’s fastest growing economy replaced Japan as the second biggest economy in the world.
Not only is this one of the biggest developments which has a potential of tilting the world economic order, but it has set tongues wagging among analysts. Some analysts have been quick to point out that this signals the emergence of the east taking over the political and economic mantle from the west.
What ever the answers, however, this has shown that the world will never be the same again. There is no doubt that technology and the ability to use it productively is to become the single biggest factor in determining the destiny of many countries.
As the African continent which has, because of objective and subjective reasons, lagged behind other countries in terms of overall human progress, we have a big challenge to conquer. For us to occupy our rightful place in the world as a continent, we need not lament our past, because we cannot change it, but must strive to better ourselves because the reality is that the world is not waiting for us.
Such a conference of how we can use technology to speed up service delivery is therefore a step in the right direction. For technology to have an impact in changing the lives of the people it cannot be the preserve of the few but should be accessible to all our people.
As a developmental state, we must ensure that our government leads by example. ICT has a capacity to increase efficiencies in government ensuring that we are quicker in fulfilling our mandate.
The days of government departments that are rendered non-functional due to the illness or incapacitation of one employee are over. The communication technologies available mean that officials can communicate over vast distances. These technological advances must be harnessed for the greater good of our country. We believe that technology is the foundation of any sustainable and prosperous society.
We have no doubt that this conference will come up with practical resolutions on how we can use technology, both as government and the private sector, to create a destiny in which all of us have a stake.
I thank you
Source: http://www.kznded.gov.za
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