South African Government Adopts Open Source Policy
(this article was first published on the SANGONeT NGO Portal on 1 March 2007)
On 22 February 2007 Cabinet approved a policy and strategy for the implementation of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in government. All new software developed for or by the government will in future be based on open standards and government will migrate all current software to FOSS.
This important Cabinet decision has the potential to transform the software landscape not only in government, but in South African society at large. The introduction of FOSS will give government sovereignty and ownership of its ICT infrastructure in terms of software security, support and development, while lowering costs, reducing dependence on international suppliers and enhancing local technology skills. It also sends a strong message as far as aligning South Africa with similar developments in other prominent developing countries such as Brazil and India.
Government continues to represent the single biggest ICT market in South Africa. By proactively driving the move towards the adoption of FOSS, government will effectively support the growth of the local ICT sector and create a viable market for FOSS products and services.
Although the adoption of a FOSS policy has been on the government agenda for the past few years, civil society played an important role in advocating for government to bring finality to this issue. In September 2006 SANGONeT and the Internet Society of South Africa coordinated a civil society petition which called on the Minister of Public Services and Administration to adopt an open source policy.
The petition was endorsed by close to 50 prominent South African NGOs, and reminded government about its obligations to the Declaration that was unanimously adopted by various government, private sector and civil society stakeholders in support of a National Open Source Strategy at the Go Open Source Conference held from 22-23 August 2005 in Johannesburg. The Declaration recommended that the Cabinet formally adopts a FOSS policy.
With the policy adopted, the challenge now shifts to the practical implementation of FOSS in government. Unfortunately, the Cabinet announcement lacked information about specific government plans in this regard. However, a project office will be established by April 2007 by the Department of Science and Technology, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) to oversee the implementation of FOSS in government structures.
In order for government’s new software policy to achieve all its objectives, and unlock real value in both government and society at large, a number of key issues should receive specific attention during the implementation process. FOSS continues to be an unknown proposition in society. What does it mean to ordinary South Africans? With the demise of the Go Open Source Campaign in 2006, little is being done to promote broad understanding about FOSS and the socio-economic value of open source adoption in a developing country such as South Africa. It continues to be a typical ICT issue and the domain of mainly stakeholders in the ICT sector and government.
Civil society organisations could play an important role in raising awareness in this regard, in partnership with government and business, and hopefully this issue will receive attention during the implementation of government’s FOSS policy. Much emphasis is being placed on the savings that will materialize as a result of large-scale adoption and migration to open source in all spheres of government. However, little is still known about the cost of migration, with decades of uncoordinated investments in ICT systems and skills reflecting the reality on the ground. What will it cost to train and retrain thousands of civil servants, what is the time framework for this process, and is the capacity and skills available in the local ICT sector to support this process in a meaningful and coordinated manner?
Ultimately, the increased adoption of open source will have significant value for both government and other sectors in society, especially civil society, where issues of affordability and sustainability are key considerations when making decisions about ICT investments.
Open source adoption in the NGO sector has been slow as the sector is constrained in its access to skills and other technology resources, and as such, is limited in its capacity to break new ground in technology usage. Significant adoption by government as the largest single procurer of ICT services will inevitably increase the number of users and technicians familiar with open source products, thereby reducing the burden of training and support that smaller early-adopters currently face. This is a burden that cannot be carried by the majority of NGOs, no matter the strategic philosophical fit with open source.
The Cabinet decision of last week has created significant expectations about a paradigm shift in government’s ICT priorities and objectives, and government will be under severe pressure to demonstrate impact and success in this regard.
Civil society will closely monitor the FOSS implementation process and continue to make critical inputs as and when required. It is therefore encouraging to notice that Cabinet has also approved the creation of a partnership with ICT NGOs, to be called the Information Society and Developmental Intergovernmental Relations Forum (ISADIGRF). This initiative will form part of the implementation of the National Information Society and Development (ISAD) Plan, aimed at building an inclusive information society in South Africa.
This development and will provide a much needed platform for regular engagement between government and civil society about national ICT issues, including the implementation of the FOSS policy.
- David Barnard, Executive Director, SANGONeT.
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On 22 February 2007 Cabinet approved a policy and strategy for the implementation of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in government. All new software developed for or by the government will in future be based on open standards and government will migrate all current software to FOSS.
This important Cabinet decision has the potential to transform the software landscape not only in government, but in South African society at large. The introduction of FOSS will give government sovereignty and ownership of its ICT infrastructure in terms of software security, support and development, while lowering costs, reducing dependence on international suppliers and enhancing local technology skills. It also sends a strong message as far as aligning South Africa with similar developments in other prominent developing countries such as Brazil and India.
Government continues to represent the single biggest ICT market in South Africa. By proactively driving the move towards the adoption of FOSS, government will effectively support the growth of the local ICT sector and create a viable market for FOSS products and services.
Although the adoption of a FOSS policy has been on the government agenda for the past few years, civil society played an important role in advocating for government to bring finality to this issue. In September 2006 SANGONeT and the Internet Society of South Africa coordinated a civil society petition which called on the Minister of Public Services and Administration to adopt an open source policy.
The petition was endorsed by close to 50 prominent South African NGOs, and reminded government about its obligations to the Declaration that was unanimously adopted by various government, private sector and civil society stakeholders in support of a National Open Source Strategy at the Go Open Source Conference held from 22-23 August 2005 in Johannesburg. The Declaration recommended that the Cabinet formally adopts a FOSS policy.
With the policy adopted, the challenge now shifts to the practical implementation of FOSS in government. Unfortunately, the Cabinet announcement lacked information about specific government plans in this regard. However, a project office will be established by April 2007 by the Department of Science and Technology, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) to oversee the implementation of FOSS in government structures.
In order for government’s new software policy to achieve all its objectives, and unlock real value in both government and society at large, a number of key issues should receive specific attention during the implementation process. FOSS continues to be an unknown proposition in society. What does it mean to ordinary South Africans? With the demise of the Go Open Source Campaign in 2006, little is being done to promote broad understanding about FOSS and the socio-economic value of open source adoption in a developing country such as South Africa. It continues to be a typical ICT issue and the domain of mainly stakeholders in the ICT sector and government.
Civil society organisations could play an important role in raising awareness in this regard, in partnership with government and business, and hopefully this issue will receive attention during the implementation of government’s FOSS policy. Much emphasis is being placed on the savings that will materialize as a result of large-scale adoption and migration to open source in all spheres of government. However, little is still known about the cost of migration, with decades of uncoordinated investments in ICT systems and skills reflecting the reality on the ground. What will it cost to train and retrain thousands of civil servants, what is the time framework for this process, and is the capacity and skills available in the local ICT sector to support this process in a meaningful and coordinated manner?
Ultimately, the increased adoption of open source will have significant value for both government and other sectors in society, especially civil society, where issues of affordability and sustainability are key considerations when making decisions about ICT investments.
Open source adoption in the NGO sector has been slow as the sector is constrained in its access to skills and other technology resources, and as such, is limited in its capacity to break new ground in technology usage. Significant adoption by government as the largest single procurer of ICT services will inevitably increase the number of users and technicians familiar with open source products, thereby reducing the burden of training and support that smaller early-adopters currently face. This is a burden that cannot be carried by the majority of NGOs, no matter the strategic philosophical fit with open source.
The Cabinet decision of last week has created significant expectations about a paradigm shift in government’s ICT priorities and objectives, and government will be under severe pressure to demonstrate impact and success in this regard.
Civil society will closely monitor the FOSS implementation process and continue to make critical inputs as and when required. It is therefore encouraging to notice that Cabinet has also approved the creation of a partnership with ICT NGOs, to be called the Information Society and Developmental Intergovernmental Relations Forum (ISADIGRF). This initiative will form part of the implementation of the National Information Society and Development (ISAD) Plan, aimed at building an inclusive information society in South Africa.
This development and will provide a much needed platform for regular engagement between government and civil society about national ICT issues, including the implementation of the FOSS policy.
- David Barnard, Executive Director, SANGONeT.
Related articles
SA government goes open source
Govt opens up
SA government to switch to open source
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