Company Announcement - Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology solutions provider, yesterday welcomed South Africa's Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services, Hon. Dr. Siyabonga Cwele, to their Johannesburg offices. The Minister visited Huawei’s exhibition hall that showcases the latest ICT technologies which include wireless, fixed and IP network infrastructure as well as UC&C solutions. During his visit, the Minister engaged in discussions with Mr. Eman Liu, President of Huawei Enterprise Business Group for Eastern and Southern Africa, on the manner in which companies like Huawei could cooperate with government to accelerate  ICT development in South Africa.

"The South African government has made a priority, through the requirements of the president, to digitise government systems. Our greatest priority is to digitise the fineline sectors such as health, police, home affairs, justice offices and so forth, and for this we need to work closely with the private sector and companies such as Huawei who offer affordability as well as international expertise,” said the Minister.

Mr. Eman Liu thanked Minister Cwele for his visit to Huawei, saying  "Huawei has been a long-term investor in South Africa, and we’re honored to have the chance to share our ICT experience with the government, and to share our training resources to narrow the ICT skills gap in South Africa. We look forward to working more closely with the Ministry of Telecommunications and Postal Services to build a better connected South Africa.”

The visit is a follow-up to the ICT SMME Workshop held by the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services  that took place on March 23th in Johannesburg. The workshop was an attempt to move away from a blanket or generalised approach of understanding SMMEs so as to account for the uniqueness of the ICT sector, thereby applying sector-unique intervention for maximum impact. As an ICT leader grown from humble beginnings, Huawei was invited by DTPS to share with delegates information on how ICT SMMEs were developed in China.

During the presentation at the ICT SMME workshop, Mr. David Wang, Vice President of Huawei’s Eastern & Southern Africa region said: “ICT infrastructure is the key factor to the fast growth of ICT SMMEs in China. Huawei is willing to cooperate with the government of South Africa to accelerate the informatisation process that will drive the development of  ICT SMMEs in  South Africa. ”

Huawei has been operating in South Africa for over 16 years and is currently one of the country’s main providers of telecommunications equipment. It cooperates widely with local telecommunications operators, private enterprises, and the government, and has become a key strategic partner in developing a digital society in South Africa. As a responsible enterprise, each year Huawei provides technical and operational training to ICT SMMEs in South Africa, nurturing local talent and driving development of the country’s ICT industry.