National broadband policy a top DoC priority

Rudolph Muller

Rudolph Muller is the editor at MyBroadband and covers telecoms and broadband news. Rudolph comes from an academic background, but left the University of...

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The Department of Communications (DoC) recently presented its 2009 – 2012 strategy at Parliament, unveiling some of its highest priorities for the coming years.  This included the development of a national broadband strategy and looking at spectrum policies and an audit of current spectrum allocation.

According to the Department of Communications the following areas will enjoy priority over the next financial year:

1. The migrating from analogue to digital broadcasting
2. National radio frequency spectrum policy
3. National broadband policy and addressing high telecoms costs
4. Cyber security policy
5. Focus on creating an information society

The Department of Communication’s priorities for the next year loosely ties in with president Jacob Zuma’s recent state of the nation address where he said that government “will ensure that the cost of telecommunications is reduced through the projects underway to expand broadband capacity.” Zuma also touched on cyber crime, and said that they are planning to intensify their efforts against cyber crime and identity theft. 

The Department of Communication’s focus on a national broadband policy may tie in with the South African National Broadband Forum’s (SANBF) recent work regarding the development and implementation of a comprehensive National Broadband Strategy for South Africa.  It is however not clear whether the SANBF will be involved in the DoC’s drafting and implementation of their national broadband policy.’

National broadband policy – give your views