Page 14 - EngineerIT December 2022

THE ECT WORLD

their first language, and only 16% speak English outside of the home. Yet, the majority Luzango Mfupe, Communications: Television
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of content on the internet is in English and other European languages. This mismatch White Spaces (TVWS), SAIEE Technical
creates a significant barrier to adopting and using the internet and all the opportunities it Talks, YouTube, 24 Aug 2020. Available
online at https://www.youtube.com/
offers as well as an opportunity for local entrepreneurs. watch?v=5jTKydGhHZA.
For example, the CSIR is working to reduce this barrier and has developed a software 10. UNATHI NKANJENI, Only 8% of South
product that converts digital text into synthetic speech in all the 11 official South African Africans speak English at home – report,
languages. The technology generates synthetic speech that is close to human speech, TimesLIVE, 05 June 2019. Available online
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at https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-
including articulation and accent. CSIR researchers have developed capabilities to work africa/2019-06-05-only-8-of-south-africans-
with resource-scarce languages and adopt state-of-the-art techniques in text-to-speech speak-english-at-home-report/.
conversion for the South African context. 11. Converting Text into Automated South
To further address the challenge of access to multi-lingual content and literacy, the African Languages, CSIR, 17 August, 2021.
Available online https://www.csir.co.za/
CSIR has developed software to help people to read, overcoming lack of mobility, visual converting-text-automated-south-african-
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impairment, dyslexia, low literacy and other special educational needs. The software breaks languages.
down these barriers by adding audio to publications and synchronising it with the text. 12. Assistive Technology for Visually Impaired,
“Local is lekker” and the language, regulation and other peculiarities of the local Dyslexic and Developing Readers, CSIR, 17
August, 2021. Available online https://www.
market should be a big opportunity for local businesses. Yet, many locally developed csir.co.za/assistive-technology-visually-
businesses struggle to compete against international giants like Google and Netflix. The impaired-dyslexic-and-developing-readers.
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locally-developed Mxit had over seven million monthly active subscribers in 2013 but 13. Small businesses say they can’t afford to
compete on Google, CBS News Money
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drowned, unable to compete with Facebook-backed WhatsApp. Today, local DStv seems Watch, 2 November, 2020. Available online
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to struggle against Netflix and says, “Netflix must be subject to the same regulations as https://www.cbsnews.com/news/google-
DStv”. This is in part due to the virtually tax- and regulation-free operation of foreign ads-small-busineses-cost-budget/.
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companies online , i.e. less than fair competition regime. 14. Loni Prinsloo, It’s time for a new Mxit in
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Only a few foreign apps, like Uber , Airbnb , and Booking.com, create or support SA, says telecoms minister after Facebook
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outage. News24. Available online https://
local jobs. The Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Ms Khumbudzo www.news24.com/fin24/companies/ict/
Ntshavheni, has said: “We cannot be dependent on the West for our technological its-time-for-a-new-sa-mxit-says-telecoms-
minister-after-facebook-outage-20211006.
environment, we must drive this ourselves as a country”. South African overall progress 15. Netflix can kill DStv, warns MultiChoice,
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in the fourth industrial revolution advancements heavily relies on the availability of MyBroadband, 7 Feb 2021. Available
connectivity and skills. online https://mybroadband.co.za/news/
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The internet is a vast opportunity for local entrepreneurs and South Africa to promote broadcasting/385414-netflix-can-kill-dstv-
warns-multichoice.html.
the ancestral heritage and grow new businesses with unique competitive advantages. 16. Netflix and Disney must comply with
Ensuring broadband coverage and making the regulation more supportive of local BEE and pay tax — MultiChoice,
innovation - whether this means giving promising local enterprises special allowances or MyBroadband, 12 June 2022. Available
enforcing South African law on the operation of foreign online businesses - will be a leap online https://mybroadband.co.za/news/
forward for South Africa. n broadcasting/448448-netflix-and-disney-
must-comply-with-bee-and-pay-tax-
multichoice.html.
References 17. Uber cites 13,000 jobs created in tough
1. Michael Minges, Exploring the Relationship Between Broadband and Economic Growth, background economy, supports special police unit,
paper prepared for the World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends, January 2015. Available TimesLive, 22 Feb 2020. Available online
online at https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/178701467988875888/pdf/102955-WP- https://www.dispatchlive.co.za/news/2020-
Box394845B-PUBLIC-WDR16-BP-Exploring-the-Relationship-between-Broadband-and-Economic- 02-22-uber-cites-13000-jobs-created-in-
Growth-Minges.pdf tough-economy-supports-special-police-unit/.
2. Gareth Vorster, Here’s how many jobs the Checkers Sixty60 delivery service has created, BusinessTech, 18. Airbnb supports 22 000 jobs across South
3 September 2021. Available online at https://businesstech.co.za/news/trending/518500/heres-how- Africa, IOL, 12 Sep 2018. Available online
many-jobs-the-checkers-sixty60-delivery-service-has-created/. https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/
3. Economic contribution of broadband, digitisation and ICT regulation: Econometric modelling for companies/airbnb-supports-22-000-jobs-
Africa, ITU. Available online at https://www.itu.int/hub/publication/d-pref-ef-bdt_afr-2019/. across-south-africa-17029508.
4. Connecting for Inclusion: Broadband Access for All, The World Bank. Available online at https://www. 19. Loni Prinsloo, Facebook outage prompts SA
worldbank.org/en/topic/digitaldevelopment/brief/connecting-for-inclusion-broadband-access-for-all. to promote local developers, Bloomberg,
5. The State of the ICT Sector Report of South Africa, Independent Communications Authority of South Available online https://www.moneyweb.
Africa (ICASA), March 2022. Available online at https://www.nab.org.za/uploads/files/State-of-ICT- co.za/news/south-africa/facebook-outage-
Sector-Report-March-2022.pdf. prompts-sa-to-promote-local-developers/.
6. Rural population (% of total population) - South Africa. The World Bank data. Available online at 20. Africa’s ICT infrastructure: Its present and
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.RUR.TOTL.ZS?locations=ZA. prospects, SAIIA. 26 Jun 2020. Available
7. Four reasons four billion people are still offline, World Economic Forum, 23 Feb 2016. Available online online https://saiia.org.za/research/africas-
at https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/02/4-reasons-4-billion-people-are-still-offline/. ict-infrastructure-its-present-and-prospects/.
8. SA ranks 136 worldwide for the cost of mobile data. IOL. Available online at https://www.iol.co.za/ 21. SA ICT alive and well, but skills shortages
business-report/companies/sa-ranks-136-worldwide-for-the-cost-of-mobile-data-e2536315-ed01- threaten 4IR progress, IITPSA, 14 Feb 2020.
4eab-a0f5-ec101398a0d4. Available online https://www.iitpsa.org.za/
9. Simnikiwe Mzekandaba, TV white space connectivity gains ground in South Africa. ITWeb. 1 Jun sa-ict-alive-and-well-but-skills-shortages-
2021. Available online at https://www.itweb.co.za/content/PmxVE7Kl6mgMQY85. Albert Lysko and threaten-4ir-progress/.

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