Following the success of the 2006 GovTech conference, this year’s conference is highly anticipated by all stakeholders, and will be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from August 21 to August 23.

Organised by the State Information Technology Agency (Sita), the conference aims to bring together delegates from the public sector as well as local and international experts and specialists from the information and communication technology (ICT) industry.

“GovTech promotes open communication and constructive dialogue between stakeholders, so as to ensure progress and development of the vision of a very precise egovern- ment strategy. And we are not leaving anything out – we will evaluate the current situation and map the road ahead,” affirms Sita chief: business operations Noedine Isaacs-Mpulo.

The conference will consist of four ‘tracks’, covering the broad theme of ‘transformation through technology together’, and will analyse the bigger role for ICT in the public service sector, with a focus on broader stakeholder involvement.

The first track looks specifically at government transformation, and asks what needs to be done in this regard to move forward. Elements that will be discussed include spatial, structured and unstructured integration, technology modernisation and service orientation, egovern- ance and citizen relationship management, the enablement of shared services (such as business process outsourcing and ICT outsourcing), creative and effective ways of extend- ing broadband to remote communities, and managing ICT security.

The second track focuses on sourcing and delivery models, including presentations and discussions regarding joint social investment and small to medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs) incubation, the creation of offshore capabilities to aid transformation, and eprocurement or the overall supply chain process alignment versus ICT-specific disciplines.

The third track investigates appli- cable technologies and pertinent trends for a South African context, including next-generation networks and convergence, the International Standards Organisation, information technology infrastructure library and control objectives for information and related technology, WiMax in comparison to high-speed down- link packet access or fourth-genera- tion, radio frequency identification, service orientated architecture, open-source software and standards, Web 2.0, nanotechnology, and collaboration tools.

The fourth track will provide State-entity updates and vertical government initiatives, and will con- sider the three spheres of government, State entities and agencies. It will include presentations from various government departments, including the Department of Transport, which will discuss lessons learned from the implementation of its eNaTIS system.

Sita’s role is to coordinate the State’s information technology resources to achieve cost savings through scale of operation, increased delivery capabilities and enhanced interopera- bility. Sita aims to leverage information technology (IT) as a strategic resource for government, managing the IT procurement and delivery pro- cess, and using IT to support the delivery of egovernment services to all citizens. Thus, Sita is the IT busi- ness for the largest employer and con- sumer of IT products and services in South Africa – the government.

The conference will also include a large expo, giving industry players the opportunity to exhibit new technology and solutions. This year’s expo will include the addition of various SMMEs, allowing them to showcase the niches they are able to cater for, as well as an international boulevard where foreign governments will display their services and projects.

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