Broadband will be a shot in arm for SA

12 September 2011 - 09:46
By I-Net Bridge

MINISTER of Communications Roy Padayachie says the government's pledge to provide broadband access for all South Africans would be like a blood transfusion into the economy.

The Department of Communications recently set itself the ambitious target of creating a million jobs in the information and communication technology sector by 2020, along with broadband access for all.

SA's broadband rate is about 10percent within a population of 50million. The minister said he wanted to provide broadband to the homes of all South Africans and said a minimum connection speed of 1Mbps was desirable.

Caxton chairperson Paul Jenkins said the challenge was not only a technological one, but also content based. "It's also what you put into your pipes," he said.

Earlier in the week, Deputy Communications Minister Obed Bapela called for more local content development in the ICT sector.