Category: SAtion News

For Nonhlanhla Zembe and her team, Kasi Army, the route to victory and success in a recent coding festival lied in them tapping into their environment.

The team of developers came out first at a two-day technology competition held in Sandton, the brainchild of global giant Microsoft’s partnership with local tech non-profit organisations, SAtion and the Empire Foundation.

The challenge for the participants was to find digital solutions to help empower small businesses and propel them to growth. Hailing from numerous townships around Gauteng, Zembe’s team is familiar with the dire state of economic activity there, and were able to come up with a solution that addressed the challenge to assist small and medium enterprises access new markets, reduce business costs and increase efficiency and productivity.

The team’s innovative Kasi Centric solution, a WhatsApp Biz bot, collects and reports on customer information and business transactional data, through scanning virtual and physical customer cards. The way it works is, shoppers present their virtual or physical card to the vendor to pay for goods and services while the vendor scans the card to document customer payments for goods and services purchased.

“Our solution was inspired by our own lived experiences of being in the townships. The situation is dire with high unemployment and with the township economy not being controlled by the township dwellers. In that environment, social ills fester and create a hopeless environment. We looked at the problems and worked our way towards a solution. This solution exists to help township owned businesses to leverage technology to offer their products and services to their immediate communities. We leverage various partners that are working to provide solutions to the townships to deliver insight-driven value to our people,” Zembe said.

The youthful team came out on top from a total of 114 young digital innovators from across the country.

“The one thing that we can say to our fellow young people is that if you sacrifice your time to work, learn and open your mind; anything is possible”.

Empire Foundation has so far worked with over 1,000 young developers and has incubated more than 188 solutions developed. Twenty one teams are being incubated at the student hub and over a half-million rand has been disbursed as prize taking at the hackathons.

BY LINDA KEA MOREOTSENE – 14 July 2022

There is a need to create an enabling business environment by developing digital skills and technologies

The presidency recently unveiled its draft Country Investment Strategy plan to draw more investment into SA. The stated and obvious aim is to grow businesses and create jobs, against the grim backdrop of record-breaking levels of unemployment over the past year. On the expanded definition, almost 46% of South Africans are unemployed.

We are self-evidently well beyond the point of unpacking the reasons why SA must increase investment. Frankly, we’re even beyond the point of casting a wide net into the infinite investment possibilities that could, should, would drive growth in an ideal world.

The reality is that life for millions of South Africans is the furthest thing from ideal right now. Millions of people have lost their lives and livelihoods since 2020. And today rising inflation, sky-high living costs, intermittent electricity and crippling consumer price increases are affecting every household and business.

More than just “feeling the pinch”, almost everyone is “feeling the punch” of a miserable economy. But we are not beyond redemption. There can be no doubt that we can increase our state’s capacity to improve investment outcomes, but this can only be achieved through a dogged focus on activating economic levers that will expand opportunities, and quickly.

We must create an enabling and skilled business environment by developing digital skills and technologies, and we must enable our current and future businesses to do business efficiently and effectively, with digitalisation and infrastructure as critical enablers.

SA is far behind in the world’s digital revolution. We may have positioned ourselves as the gateway to Africa in the past, but countries such as Kenya, Rwanda and Nigeria have been quick to lead the way towards establishing themselves as today’s digital gateway to the continent.

At this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos the WEF and the Digital co-operation Organisation (DCO) launched the Digital Foreign Direct Investment Initiative. This focuses on accelerating FDI for digitalisation in emerging economies. It is a prime opportunity for SA to attract investment — so where do we feature? Nowhere.

The WEF predicts that 70% of future economic growth is set to be digital, and DCO members such as Rwanda and Nigeria were identified as valuable investment opportunities, but SA did not feature at all. We must become a member of the DCO if we want to secure increased foreign investment, or simply attract foreign interest and enquiries. To have any chance at seizing the opportunities provided by the global digital economy we must wave our flag as high and as vigorously as possible.

Some years ago the Presidential Commission for the 4IR (PC4IR) identified that a digitally enabled economy was the only way that SA could survive and thrive in a modern global economy. Of the eight workstreams the PC4IR identified there are three pivotal areas that are the most effective levers to unlock inclusive growth in SA.

If we can get small and medium-sized enterprises (SMMEs) development, 4IR skill enablement and digital regulation right with critical enablers in place, SA will be on the right track to grow into the digital future. The powerhouses of our economy — SMMEs and entrepreneurs — should be empowered and upskilled in digital skills, processes and technology in an enabling regulatory environment to propel SA towards its transformed inclusive social and economic goals.

That is the only way we can immediately increase knowledge transfers and tax revenue, while enabling the continued digital development of our human capital. All of these would contribute substantially towards improving our country’s economic resilience in the long term.

Many businesses and public sector enterprises are playing their part to make this happen now. Microsoft SA, the Empire Partner Foundation (EPF) and SAtion recently hosted a hackathon to solve the problem of unlocking economic growth for SMMEs in SA townships, using the opportunities available through the 4IR.

The event brought together a remarkable group of young tech innovators from across SA: skilled data experts, data engineers, data scientists, Microsoft front- and back-end developers, business analysts, marketers, finance experts and more.

The triumphant team, “Kasi Army” won with its “Kasi Centric” solution. It uses a WhatsApp Business bot and QR code technology to scan virtual and physical customer cards. Designed to open many more payment options, it will crucially enable better data-driven business decision-making and performance. As part of its prize the Kasi Army will join the EPF Incubation Hub and also won R14,000 in prizes to start up its techpreneurial foundations.

But these efforts could come to nought if SA doesn’t invest emotion, passion and financial commitments to digitalise every element of our economy. It can be as simple as an entrepreneur understanding how to better use the data their business already collects; it can be as complicated as SA establishing an artificial intelligence institute to mould the next Elon Musk.

We can’t wait for another strategy, or another plan, or another crisis to hit. Right now we need to move beyond our dire reality towards the returns of a digitalised economy.

ADAM CRAKER AND JUSTINE GRIMMER

• Craker is CEO and Grimmer programme lead, at SAtion, an NPO and partnership between government and business enablers with the aim of digitalising SA for inclusive economic growth.

Winning Team: Kasi Army
Top Row From Left: Mamello Mofokeng, Alex Thotse, Sinazo Mona (Deputy Team Leader), Nkululeko Nkosi,
Mfundo Ntuli.
Virtual Participants Bottom Row From Left: Bongane Mawele, Nonhlanhla Zembe (Team Leader).

• EPF once again proudly partnered with SAtion, Digital SA Nation N PC, to host a Microsoft sponsored Township SMME Development Hackathon. The hybrid event was hosted physically at the EPF headquarters in lllovo Sandton, and virtually on Discord.
• Context: It is essential to develop tangible solutions for the challenges faced by SMME. During the SAtion Township SMME Workshop, which took place 27 May 2022, SAtion and the Sustainable Livelihoods Foundation identified crucial business information and data challenges faced by Tembisa Township SMME. Participants in the Hackathon thus solved for real-life challenges raised by Township SMME using Microsoft technologies.
• Hackathon focus: How can we, through tech, solve for Township SMMEs’ business information and data challenges in order to improve their business efficiencies?
• 114 young digital innovators in programming, data science and data engineering (with participants from the Microsoft Datathon), UI-UX, business, finance and marketing from across South Africa participated in solving the challenge by developing relevant data technology solutions using GitHub and Azure.
• The winning team ‘Kasi Army’, who were awarded R14 000 in prize money, will join the EPF Incubation Hub where they will receive support to become technopreneurs. Their solution, aptly called Kasi Centric, utilises GitHub, Azure, plus a WhatsApp Biz bot and QR code technology to collect, store and analyse customer info and business transactional data through scanning virtual and physical customer cards. Their solution is envisioned to utilise technology such as MoMO payments and /or USSD capability. This solution has the potential to enable data­driven business decision making; improve business operational efficiencies, provide business performance benchmarking and create business communities.
• Team Leader, Nonhlanhla Zembe says, “After months of trying and trying, with many hackathon attendances, finally getting another shot at number one is truly liberating. Our tech solution was inspired by our own lived experiences of being in the townships. We looked at the problems and worked our way towards a solution. This solution exists to help township owned businesses to leverage technology to offer their products and services to their immediate communities. We leverage various ecosystem partners that are working to provide solutions to the townships to deliver insight-driven value to our people. As much as winning is a bonus, we are very grateful to SAtion, the Empire Partner Foundation and Microsoft.”
• The National Technology Officer, Asif Valley, from Microsoft South Africa says, “Microsoft is proud to have been a sponsor of the Township SMME Hackathon and wishes all the participants the very best in taking their solutions forward. It’s incumbent on all of us – but especially those businesses with access to global resources and expertise – to open the channels of learning and access in our communities.”
• SAtion Programme Lead, Justine Grimmer comments, “SAtion, founded by BUSA, as South Africa’s biggest and most dedicated N PO for digital growth transformation is determined to bring together the world’s best – from multinationals to grassroots talent – to bridge our country’s digital divide and grow our 41R capability. Township SMME are an integral part of the backbone of communities in South Africa. These SMME provide vital job opportunities and have the potential to make significant contributions to economic growth. This Hackathon, sponsored by Microsoft and enabled by Empire Partner Foundation and the Sustainable Livelihoods Foundation, is just one way of doing it, and there are so many more catalytic moments to come.”
• Mikhial Mariemuthu, EPF’s Senior Manager comments, “EPF is proud to have an opportunity to partner with SAtion and Microsoft in hosting another hackathon! To be able to see young talented South Africans build innovative solutions through the Microsoft platform showed us that, there’s a lot of untapped potential in the youth that can change our country for the better! We look forward to working with SAtion and Microsoft on future hackathons and sector related projects!”

Upcoming Hackathons:

• 5 more monthly hackathons to be hosted in 2022 by Empire Partner Foundation. Save the date by clicking here: https://cutt.ly/tGn0Ye5
• The next hackathon theme will be announced on our Social Media platforms to be hosted end of July 2022. Follow us on these handles: https://linktr.ee/epftechhub
• Keep an eye on the SAtion website for more exciting game-changing events and learning opportunities www.SAtion.org.za

Special thanks to:

• Microsoft for sponsoring the Hackathon.
• ITWeb for covering our Hackathon story.
• The Keynote Speaker: Asif Valley (Microsoft, National Technology Officer)
• Guest speakers: Lebogang Madise (Microsoft, Azure Developer Audience PMM (MEA-HQ)), Recia Letief (Microsoft, Territory Channel Manager)
• The judges: Gareth Owen (IQbusiness, Data Specialist). Mpho Nche (City of Ekurhuleni, Divisional Head). Bongani Mako (Tembisa SMME). Carol Masingi (Sustainable Livelihoods Foundation, Social Science Researcher). Tshepo Matjila (IQBusiness, Design Thinking Specialist).
• Team mentors: Carike Botha (iSolve, Technology Specialist). Jacque De Villiers (iSo/ve, Technology Specialist). Rodney Manzini (iSolve, Technology Specialist). Fanyana Mthethwa (Tembisa SMME).
• SAtion and EPF’s university partners that assist in inviting students to participate: WeThinkCode. Hyperion Dev. Durban University of Technology (DUT). University of Kwa-Zulu-Natal (UKZN). Jobox and their university partners.

Download the full press release here

South Africa has been leaping over literal and physical divides for generations. Among the many useful inventions that hail from our shores are the CAT or CT scan, the dolos and Pratley Putty. In 1995, a South African public-private partnership invented the globally renowned Shark Shield, which now repels sharks near surfers, swimmers and kayakers the world over.

There’s no reason for this pioneering spirit and these unique innovations to falter when facing the digital divide. But we need to remain focused on the practical realities of this often nebulous divide if we’re to keep pace with the progression of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR).

The digital divide is simply the gap between people who have access to affordable, reliable internet services — plus the skills and gadgets needed to take advantage of that access — and those who don’t. This gap is huge in South Africa and has prevented millions of us from accessing a range of digital opportunities and allowing our human capital to compete globally.

It looks like the right building blocks are now finally being put in place to enable us to grasp these opportunities with both hands. The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa finalised the long-awaited spectrum auction in March, and mobile network operators invested R14.4-billion to acquire new radio frequency spectrum allocations. The release of additional spectrum is expected to allow increased mobile coverage, improved services and lower prices for consumers. This will be especially valuable in rural areas, where network coverage has been limited for decades.

The spectrum release is certainly a key, discernable stepping stone towards conquering the digital divide. But there are three focus groups that are central to any effective strategy to bridge the digital divide in the longer term: quality interventions through hardware and upskilling must be prioritised in our schools (and the youth in general); among women (especially rural women); and in our SMMEs.

Some South African innovators are already using digitalisation thinking and skills to live the adage “each one, teach one” to solve human problems, with human solutions.

In some of our schools, the Eduze Clox device, an innovative product of a SAtion partner, Eduze, is having a remarkable impact capaciting rural schools and teachers with access to the technology they need to overcome intermittent connectivity and power issues. The Clox — or “cloud in a box” — is a plug-and-play offline classroom platform. Acting as an external hard drive with built-in wi-fi, it can distribute the latest accredited educational videos, e-books, podcasts and pre-recorded lessons on a TV.

One of the features that the Clox boasts is that a 30-minute video lesson can be downloaded in two minutes, without using any data, and without requiring teachers or learners to have any technical skills to use it. Not only does it change the teaching and learning dynamic in a classroom, but any pupil who had to miss school can catch up on recorded lessons and content without having to spend a cent.

Secondly, an honest reality check of women’s access to digital technology and science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) skills is needed. According to data from the World Wide Web Foundation, a recent study by the World Economic Forum on gender inequality found that men are 52% more likely to have access to the internet than women in the world’s least developed countries. And in sub-Saharan Africa, it’s especially dire: only 28% of women in Sub-Saharan Africa are making use of the internet.

Bridging this enormous gap will require improved access to internet devices, widespread education of digital basics, and training for women specifically. We can take some lessons from another local NPO, GirlCode, which is on a mission to empower 10-million women and girls with tech skills by 2030, because this gap isn’t just bad for women, it’s bad for business and our inclusive economic growth aspirations.

To date, GirlCode has provided 62 000 beneficiaries with access to the resources and materials they need to become coders. Their online coding classes focus on tech skills that are in demand, using or donating equipment to schools and girls’ homes. The skills include Python for Data Analysis, Amazon Web Services Cloud Practitioners, Java Developer and general web development. By making these courses available online, or in-person over weekends, entirely free of charge, GirlCode is powerfully bridging South Africa’s digital gender gap.

Lastly, if we are to continue giving everyone a realistic opportunity to participate in the 4IR, we must continue to make tried and tested digital solutions available to SMMEs and entrepreneurs in need. There are several free tools and platforms that already exist, which are able to offer real solutions to everyday business problems — our SMMEs must be encouraged and supported to take advantage of these, or conceptualise and build these solutions themselves.  SAtion’s SMME Business Hub is one such free resource.

Working with government, labour, academics, and business, digital and economic experts, as South Africa’s dedicated digitalisation engine, SAtion, we know that we have some of the answers and certainly the will to make the leap. But we must work together to ensure that we collectively source the right answers and take this leap together.  Our collective futures simply cannot afford for anyone to be left behind, and we invite all businesses and institutions to join SAtion in achieving this goal.

Dimakatso Matshoga – 27 April

Image source: Mail&Guardian – Afropolitanism: Africans get their knowledge the traditional way but they are now being exposed to more images

Dear Fellow South Africans, Telcos, Regulatory Bodies,

What strange and exciting times we are living in. Perhaps you saw the headlines earlier this month, about an Indonesian student who became an accidental millionaire after converting five years’ worth of selfies to non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The 22-year-old, Sultan Gustaf Al Ghozali, said selling the selfies as NFTs was a joke, and has expressed confusion over why anyone would want to buy his selfies. Nevertheless, hundreds of people did, and soon his collection reached a trade volume equivalent to more than US $1 million.

While this tale is one of fluke – yet another curious case of the internet behaving inexplicably and in a manner that is impossible to predict –  Sultan Gustaf Al Ghozali possessed the fundamental digital literacy to casually upload his stash of selfies as NFTs, simply to entertain himself. “Uploading my photo into NFT lol,” he wrote on Twitter on 10 January, as he listed them on trading platform OpenSea. Kids today, hey?

I am curious to know whether you, when hearing about such events, are moved to reflect on whether South African citizens and SMME have the internet speed and bandwidth to apply their 4IR innovative ideas practically. Are SA’s children able to play in the digital marketplace with the skill and agility of their peers elsewhere in the world? More broadly, to what extent are South Africans equipped to meaningfully embrace the digital dawn? This has been on our government’s radar for the last 16 years. The publication of the National Digital and Future Skills Strategy in August 2020 was an encouraging development, with the Strategy setting out 8 strategic priorities intended to weave together basic and advanced digital skills across the economy, society and government.

It was music to my – and doubtless many others’ – ears to note that the Strategy recognizes that in addition to the range of new job opportunities created through the advancement of the digital world, the world itself is now digital; and in order for South Africa to reap the benefits of this rich-with-possibility landscape, digital skills, data accessibility and infrastructure are critical.

But there’s just one massive problem – infrastructure roll-out has been delayed for 16 years, and infrastructure is a critical enabler of skill take-up and economic recovery!

Implementation of the Strategy is being collared by the inordinate delays to opening South Africa’s spectrum to a fair and equitable auction and marketplace. I am sure you are aware of the findings of Stats SA’s latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey, and may have been shocked to note that 19% of semi-skilled jobs that existed prior to the lockdown have disappeared. Meanwhile in the US, unemployment has fallen to 3.9%, in a scenario that is being called Maximum Employment.

With the hundreds of thousands of jobs that have been lost as lockdown casualties, it is high time to open the door to the endless possibilities that exist in the digital space. The SMME sector in particular could flourish with opportunities for inclusive economic growth. The possibilities are vast and far ranging, from digital ethics and digital risk management, to machine learning scientists, AI developers, UI/UX designers, big data manipulators and specialists, cyber security and forensics experts, cloud computing solutions architects, simulation engineers, cryptocrimes investigators, and gaming tutors to name just a few. With South Africans’ innate knack for innovation, who knows what developmental breakthroughs could be achieved?

This is why it is absolutely vital that the obstacles standing in the way of our advancement are removed – as a matter of urgency. I am appealing to Telcos, regulators and government to take every constitutionally sound step possible to ensure that the spectrum is opened as a matter of urgency. Spectrum with its resulting socio-economic advancement benefits must be unlocked and become an immediate reality. With the upcoming State of the Nation Address, we hope to hear commitment and concrete action on how the Strategy is being rolled out in schools, society, and our economy. This will hopefully be bolstered by fiscal commitments in the budget address a few weeks later to intentionally invest in our country’s digital future.

In case this is coming across unhealthily fixated on careers and cold, hard economic growth, allow me to clarify that it is about so, so much more than that. It is about removing the heavy foot of monopoly from the neck of our collective hope, and dreams of a different life. It is about allowing South Africans to be competitive and expert participants in the global digital economy, both as individuals and as businesses, especially SMMEs. Where our children have the confidence and skills to build their own household name in global social networking.

South Africa cannot continue to be a spectator to the 4^th industrial revolution, watching from the sidelines as other economies grow and workforces evolve. We are ready – more than ready. For SMMEs, and the jobs that they support, the availing of the much-needed spectrum is already almost two decades too late. Many SA businesses cannot afford to survive a moment longer.

Dimakatso Matshoga is the chief operations officer of SAtion, a partnership between the government and business enablers with the aim of digitalising South Africa for inclusive economic growth.

Read the article online: https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/opinion/open-letter-the-spectrum-of-possibilities-18339115-4e85-477e-b647-b7048c7071dd

Source and Image: IOL – Photo Leon Nicholas

SA businesses should help grow digital skills among the unemployed and youth

Whether SA is ready or not, the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) is happening now. It is more vital than ever that SA businesses are able to take up the many opportunities provided by it, including digital transformation, if we want to escape the economic stagnation our country finds itself in.

This is especially important as SA faces huge economic growth and unemployment challenges. Unemployment, specifically among young people, is at a record high. According to Stats SA’s latest figures, 66.5% of people aged 15 to 24 years old are unemployed. The reality is that the global economy is going to increasingly offer future generation employment opportunities in digital and tech-focused roles, and we need to make sure current and future generations can grab these.

Let’s take the example of the internet of things (IoT) — physical devices that connect to the internet and can send/share data, including devices such as smartwatches, fleet tracking devices or temperature sensors at an airport. A 2021 report by the UN Conference on Trade & Development, “Digital Economy Report”, forecasts growth related to IoT globally. The report estimates that by 2025 the total number of IoT connections will be 25.2-billion, up from 9.1-billion in 2018.

Crucially when thinking about economic growth, this increase in the number of IoT connections is linked to a related boom in revenue of about $1.1-trillion by 2025. But of that revenue growth of only 1% is predicted to flow to the whole of Sub-Saharan Africa.

The report also speaks of the vast quantity of data created by IoT and how this may link to cross-border data flows. It highlights a 2021 study that predicts emerging economies (including SA) could benefit immensely from open cross-border data sharing linked to the increased use of IoT. In fact, estimates are that — under the right conditions — this could lead to a 2.6% increase in GDP and 1.3% increase in employment in the case of SA.

Remembering that IoT is but one facet of the growth in the digital economy, the opportunities of digital transformation to our overall economic growth and the related jobs that come with it come into sharp relief.

So we know the opportunity we all need to turn the tide against unemployment and economic stagnation is here. But it is vital that SA’s workforce is able to match the skills requirements aligned with this huge growth, or the opportunity will simply pass us by.

If we are to take advantage of these and other 4IR economy opportunities we urgently require building, sharing and growing digital skills among the unemployed or underemployed youth in SA, ensuring that we build the right skills for employability. This should be an imperative for all SA businesses.

Covid-19 has seen the rapid acceleration of the need for digital transformation in a number of sectors as consumers (whether individual or corporate) have increasingly moved to online platforms to purchase and do business. Any business that wants to remain competitive in this environment will increasingly need to draw from a labour force equipped with the right digital skills.

SA youth face numerous barriers to cultivating the right set of skills to take advantage of the possible employment opportunities that the digital economy does and could provide in future. The reality of a lack of access to reliable internet connectivity and affordable data (including the cost of mobile data, for example), hardware and electricity are all critical and practical factors at play. As is the availability of quality and affordable digital skills programmes that would help our youth take up these opportunities.

This is where the private sector in SA can help break down these barriers. There are numerous avenues that this kind of assistance can take, including donating unused, new or just recently out of date tech and equipment to schools or community-based tech labs. It includes offering funding or practical work experience opportunities for higher education and skills training that have a focus on digital and tech skills. These are but a few of the initiatives that can help SA youth join the labour market with skills that are actually in demand.

Through SAtion partnerships with the government, global leaders such as Microsoft and local innovators at Afrika Tikkun, we’re starting to see some hope. The Mzansi Digital Learning platform provides free education from basic computer literacy through to advanced IT skills for SA’s unemployed young people. But it will take a range of private sector businesses investing in similar projects and initiatives enabled by a progressive government to close the digital divide in SA so we can get to a critical tipping point.

Businesses undertaking these kinds of initiatives should see this as a two-fold and long-term investment. First, a labour force that can keep pace with business’s own demands for digitally skilled workers is essential. But second, we all need to work together to close the digital divide in SA. This will have a multitude of positive externalities for our country beyond economic growth and employment — namely, helping to create a more inclusive and equitable society.

As reflected by Robert F Smith of Vista Equity Partners at a 2021 World Economic Forum event, “there are enormous opportunities if we can close the divide, from education to employment. There is ‘massive economic impact’ in uplifting communities, if we can take advantage.”

The 4IR is here. We must take every advantage of the opportunities we have to uplift SA for that future.

• Matshoga is COO at SAtion, a partnership between the government and business enablers with the aim of digitalising SA for inclusive economic growth.

Source and Image: Business Day – 17 Jan 2022

Tarsus On Demand and Tarsus Distribution, are partnering with the SAtion ecosystem to help drive digital transformation in South Africa’s small, medium and micro enterprise (SMME) sector.

The goal is to catalyse economic development and job creation through accelerating digitalisation.

Launched on 14 June 2021, SAtion draws together stakeholders in the private and public sectors — including Business Unity South Africa, government, large businesses, SMMEs, industrialists, private investors, thought leaders, and educational institutions — to discuss, coordinate and implement Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) projects.

Under terms of the agreement, Tarsus On Demand will deliver an enabling platform and technology solutions that will help SMMEs to fast-track their digital transformation. Tarsus On Demand will work closely with its independent software vendor and managed service provider partners to help SMMEs in the digital enablement of their businesses.

Tarsus Distribution, meanwhile, will bring a community of ICT resellers, many of them SMMEs and black-owned companies, to the platform. They will partner with SMMEs in digital projects.

Anton Herbst, CEO of Tarsus On Demand, comments: “With digital technology reshaping the global economy, big business and industrialisation will not, on their own, be able to deliver all the jobs and growth we need to put our country on a sustainable path. Harnessing digital technologies and SMMEs is the key to creating tomorrow’s globally competitive, inclusive and shared economy.

“This isn’t a challenge any organisation or sector can address on its own – which is why we’re pleased to join hands with SAtion and work with its partners from the public and private sectors to drive digital progress among the country’s SMMEs. This partnership connects with one of our key purposes – working with industry partners to help SMMEs scale and succeed through digital technology.”

Gary Pickford, chief commercial officer at Tarsus Distribution, adds: “SMMEs today need access to digital technology if they are to be efficient and competitive in a changing world. We are excited about the opportunity to connect SMMEs with our reseller community, giving them access to partners who understand their business needs and can guide them on the long-term digital transformation journey.”

Dimakatso Matshoga, chief operations officer of the SAtion ecosystem, says: “To thrive in the post-pandemic recovery period and beyond, SMMEs will need to optimise costs, drive innovation, strategically collaborate for success, and enhance productivity.

“We are looking forward to working with Tarsus On Demand and Tarsus Distribution in helping SMMEs to harness 4IR technologies such as AI and the cloud to become more resilient, adaptable and competitive. And all this in order for these SMMEs to create further innovative enterprises and thus advance sustainable employment.”

Source and Image: IT-Online – 17 Nov 2021

Tarsus On Demand, a cloud enablement business, and ICT distributor Tarsus Distribution, are partnering with the SAtion ecosystem to help drive digital transformation among SA’s SMMEs sector.

Unveiled on 14 June this year, SAtion is a non-profit enterprise that seeks to bring stakeholders in the private and public sectors together, to discuss, coordinate and implement fourth industrial revolution (4IR) projects. These include Business Unity South Africa, government, large and small entities, industrialists, private investors, thought leaders, and educational institutions

The agreement will see Tarsus On Demand delivering a platform and technology solutions that will help SMMEs to fast-track their digital transformation. The company will work closely with its independent software vendor and managed service provider partners

Tarsus Distribution will bring a community of ICT resellers, many of them SMMEs and black-owned companies, to the platform, and will partner

Anton Herbst, CEO of Tarsus On Demand, says big business and industrialisation on their own will not be able to deliver the jobs and growth needed to put SA on a sustainable path.

“Harnessing digital technologies and SMMEs is the key to creating tomorrow’s globally competitive, inclusive and shared economy.”

He says the task is too big for one organisation or sector, which is why Tarsus is pleased to work with SAtion and its partners.

Gary Pickford, Tarsus Distribution’s chief commercial officer, says today’s SMMEs need access to digital technology if they are to be efficient and competitive in a changing world. “We are excited about the opportunity to connect SMMEs with our reseller community, giving them access to partners who understand their business needs and can guide them on the long-term digital transformation journey.”

“To thrive in the post-pandemic recovery period and beyond, SMMEs will need to optimise costs, drive innovation, strategically collaborate for success, and enhance productivity,” adds Dimakatso Matshoga, chief operations officer of the SAtion ecosystem.

Source and Image: ITWeb

Digital skills development firm SAtion has collaborated with Microsoft and non-profit tech hub Empire Partner Foundationto host a skills development hackathon this weekend.

Launched in June, SAtion seeks to draw together stakeholders in the private and public sectors − including government, large corporations, SMMEs, industrialists, private investors and educational institutions − to discuss, co-ordinate and implement fourth industrial revolution projects.

The non-profit has an online platform – the SAtion Digital Skills Hub– aimed at providing young South Africans from the ages of eight to 24 with free access to Microsoft Office 365, free digital literacy resources and Microsoft Cloud Society resources.

The hackathon aims to find solutions to help enable disadvantaged young South Africans to access digital learning tools and skills programmes available through enablers to the SAtion ecosystem, like Microsoft and non-profit Afrika Tikkun.

Some of these initiatives are available through Microsoft’s learning paths, and are designed to empower and uplift young people with the digital skills they need to start their own businesses and find work.

In June last year, Microsoft launched its global skills development initiative in collaboration with Afrika Tikkun, aimed at helping to create employment opportunities by training 25 million people worldwide in digital skills.

According to SAtion, local youth face several challenges and constraints to accessing digital skills learning platforms, hindering their ability to benefit from the globally competitive skills and certifications these learning opportunities provide.

“The majority of South African youth lack access to stable, affordable and reliable infrastructure – including electricity and power, basic hardware like computers or tablets, and data,” saysSAtion COO Dimakatso Matshoga.

“These form difficult obstacles which need to be overcome if we are to work towards increasing youth employment, while growing our local economy. We have designed this hackathon to take the first big step towards ensuring the true digital transformation of our economy, by breaking down the barriers that prevent the digital upskilling of our people.”

The SAtion hackathon will require participating teams to design a solution to assist rural youth to access the resources they might need to complete their Microsoft learning paths, thereby increasing their employability.

Cash prizes amount to R30 000, together with an opportunity for the winning team to formally build their own business around the solutions developed.

SAtion hopes this hackathon will be the first of many, in its efforts to help create a globally competitive and digitalised economy in South Africa.

The hackathon will take place on 20 and 21 November, from 08:00 to 16:30, at the Empire Partner Foundation at 35 Ferguson Road, Illovo, Sandton.

Source and Image: ITWeb