The Sunday News
Limukani Ncube
THE National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) identifies Digital Economy as part of national priorities set to transform the country into an upper middle-income economy by 2030.
Government has said the Upper Middle-Income Economy, with less income disparities, will be underpinned by the development of a middle class. In addition, employment rates will be raised upwards by 80 percent. The desired Upper-Middle Income Economy will have a per capita Gross National Income (GNI) of over US$5000 in real terms by 2030, from US$1 440 realised in 2018. GNI is the total amount of money earned by a nation’s people and businesses. It is used to measure and track a nation’s wealth from year to year. At a local level, a Middle-Income Status would mean that every individual at work makes at least US$10, 86 per day, and GNI calculates income instead of output, expert say.
Some of the national priorities to uplift people’s lives are Economic Growth and Stabilisation, Food and Nutrition Security, Moving the Economy up the Value Chain and Structural Transformation, Infrastructure and Utilities, Housing Delivery, Governance, Social Protection, Image Building, International Engagement and Re-Engagement, Environmental Protection, Climate Resilience and Natural Resources Management, Youth, Sport and Culture, Health and Wellbeing, as well as Human Capital Development and Devolution.
Government stresses that Information Communication Technologies (ICTs), are key enablers of economic development, hence their entrenchment across all national development strategies.
“Implementation of e-Government services has progressed steadily, through investments in the requisite ICT infrastructure, introduction of e-services to the citizenry in areas such as health, education, research and development, as well as the creation of Community Information Centres in some of the disadvantaged communities.
Over the past decade, great strides have been achieved in the uptake and use of ICTs, as evidenced by the high active mobile penetration rates of 94.2% and the internet penetration rate, which stood at 59.1%, as at the first quarter of 2020,” read part of the NDS1 document.
The government has already started working towards a Digital Economy, with the extension of the fibre optic backbone, to ensure connectivity that will make the country part of the global village. In addition, plans are afoot to develop and impart appropriate ICT skills within the public sector whilst at the same time prioritising implementation of an effective change management programme to ensure improved adaptation of ICTs.
The NDS 1 document says Government will also expedite implementation of National ICT Device Factory, Upgrade Government Internet Services Provider (GISP) infrastructure to improve utilisation of ICTs. Priority will also be on development of e-Government Enterprise Architecture and Interoperability Framework, implementation of National Data Centre, improved coverage of the Public Finance Management Systems (PFM), as well as enhancement and optimisation of Government common connectivity infrastructure in order to realise improved efficiency and effectiveness in Government internal operations and administration.
There will be full utilisation of the Whole of Government Performance Management System (WoGPMS) and Model Driven Architecture (MDA) specific Management Information Systems will be implemented. Government will strengthen the establishment of ICT access centres across the country with particular emphasis on marginalised areas. This will be reinforced through expansion of communication infrastructure, mainstreaming of ICTs to all sectors and provision of affordable access to ICTs. In action, there will be protection of consumer rights in the digital domain and fostering of a trustworthy online environment will be prioritised and Government will strengthen implementation of the Cyber Security Strategy.
In order to close the digital divide, whereby some people have access and some have no access to the internet, the Government, apart from embarking on infrastructure development, has already commenced skills upgrade to its workers and the general population, with Information Communication Centres having been set up at district level across the country with the Ministry of ICT, Postal and Courier Services having established over 150 Containerised Village Information Centres (VICs) or Community Information Centres (CIC) — in urban and rural areas, as well as previously marginalised communities to foster innovation and help locals develop new businesses. The centres have also come in handy for school going children as they freely access the internet for academic research.
ICT, Postal and Courier Services Minister, Dr Jenfan Muswere, is on record saying the Covid-19 pandemic has brought to the fore the importance of ICTs in all aspects of life as they have kept societies and economies functional and to some extent sustainable.
He said the lockdown period has resulted in an unparalleled surge in the use of the Internet in providing e-services that include e-learning, e-shopping, e-worshiping and e-health, among other innovations. The Minister said the Government was determined to ensure every citizen was involved in making the Digital Economy, with emphasis on the need to invest more in ICT infrastructure that widens access.
“The necessity for greater investment in digital technologies, skills, resilience and innovation can never be overemphasised. We need to enrich our digital space by retooling major facets of our economy in order to bring about requisite agility and resilience, and to deliver greater efficiencies across entire value chains throughout the economy and across the entire nation. Our strongest desire is for digital transformation to be the cornerstone of the National Development Strategy (NDS1).”
In addition, early this year, President Mnangagwa launched the National Data Centre, which is aimed at creating a one-stop centre for all Government data, and a clear testimony of his desire to see the Digital Economy taking shape.
The President said for greater success, it was important for Government ministries to establish a strategic e- platform to facilitate the availability of timely sharing of critical information.
“In the present development epoch, technology plays a significant role where connectivity is viewed as the lifeblood of all business transactions and human interactions. Strategic facilities such as the National Data Centre ensure that Zimbabwe is not left behind,” said the President.
He pointed out that e-governance and the deployment of new technologies will improve the overall quality of service delivery across the economy. In addition, infrastructure such as the National Data Centre and the Zimbabwe High Performance Computing Centre established at the University of Zimbabwe, will go a long way towards capacitating institutions on adaptation of all sectors of the economy in line with the fourth industrial revolution.
Experts say “the world as we know it is continually changing, and one of the fundamental drivers is digital transformation. At its core, digital transformation is not only about Internet ‘start up companies’. It’s about using the latest technology to do what you already do – but better,” and a digital economy thus results from economic activities that take place through the use of internet platforms.
