Broadband delays hurting job creation
Delays in the rollout of broadband in SA will hamper the creation of thousands of jobs in the ICT space and will have a significant negative impact on GDP, according to MTN CEO, Karel Pienaar.
Last month, communications minister Dina Pule said that the country’s migration to broadband by 2020 would create one million jobs.
At the opening day of the inaugural ICT Indaba in Cape Town on Monday (5 June), Pienaar said the foundation to enabling a knowledge economy is a quality broadband infrastructure.
“According to the World Bank, every 10% incremental broadband penetration will result in a 1.38% point GDP growth rate. This is consistent with the assessment of the GSM Association that reaching a 20% wireless broadband penetration rate in South Africa by 2015 will generate R72 billion incremental GDP and approximately 28,000 jobs in the ICT sector.”
Research by World Wide Worx has revealed that the internet directly contributes around 2% to the South African economic output.
The report also found that over six million South Africans have access to internet, while mobile broadband grew by 31% in 2011 to reach 4.2 million people in the country.
“Delays in the rollout of broadband could result in thousands of jobs not being created and a significant negative impact on GDP. Mobile will be the key to delivering the lion’s share of objectives.
“Also, investing in skills and education is essential. Incumbent operators need to participate in this and leverage existing infrastructure. Spectrum allocation needs to be done immediately and allocations must not be fragmented,” Pienaar said.
He cautioned governments against trying to artificially increase competition through licensing. “There are many examples in Europe of how this has not worked. Instead, they should facilitate e-skills, planning, and local content support. State-owned enterprises should be encouraged to tender with the private sector for ICT expansion initiatives,” the CEO said.
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