IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

The Orlando East Library was the first one to go on-line when the Public Access to Internet in Libraries (PAIL) was launched by the Executive Mayor, Clr Parks Tau on Wednesday, 21 November 2012.

Mayor Tau said a project like PAIL would bridge the digital divide.

“One has been keen on the project like this one. Not only does it bridge the digital divide, but it also promotes access to information. The digital age is ensuring that the information is available by the click of the finger,” said Clr Tau.

Read more: ZA: Johannesburg: The oldest township library goes on-line

Als Südafrika mit anderen afrikanischen Staaten im Mai den Zuschlag für die weltweit größte Teleskopanlage SKA bekam, war der Jubel unter den Wissenschaftlern des Kontinents groß – obwohl Konkurrent Australien auch ein Stück vom astronomischen Mega-Projekt abbekam. Afrika sehnt sich danach, das Klischee als Kontinent von Rückständigkeit, Misswirtschaft und Krisen loszuwerden – und endlich auch als Standort für Modernisierung und Technik Ansehen zu gewinnen. Nun prescht eine südafrikanische Kommune mit einem ehrgeizigen Internet-Projekt vor: Stellenbosch will als erste Großstadt Afrikas – und einer der ersten Orte in der Welt – die Gemeinde flächendeckend und kostenlos mit WLAN versorgen.

Read more: ZA: Pioniere der Technik in Afrika: WLAN kostenlos für alle

“Bringing technology into a broken education system is a waste of time.”

“Information and communication technology (ICT) is not high on the Department of Basic Education’s agenda, and it’s practised in a fragmented, uncoordinated manner.”

“It’s impossible to roll out ICT across all provinces because of varying situations and the different approaches to interpreting ICT policy.”

Read more: ZA: Info technology at schools faces hurdles

Researchers in South Africa have performed a systematic appraisal of the potential opportunities and challenges of scaling mHealth technology as part of that that country's community-based services. The lessons learned from the study may be useful for policy and practice decision-making in other low- and middle-income settings, according to a Nov. 5 article published in BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making.

By applying a framework adapted from reviewing sustainable information and communication technology (ICT), the qualitative study reviewed the benefits and challenges of mHealth in community-based services (CBS) in South Africa through a combination of key informant interviews, site visits to local projects and document reviews. The study's four key areas of assessment included government stewardship and the organizational, technological and financial systems involved.

Read more: ZA: Capacity for using HIM one of many hurdles to scaling mHealth in underserved settings