Value
Proposition
The Cape Digital Foundation
37 Barrack Street, 2nd Floor, Cape Town, 8001
www.digitalfoundation.org.za
Value Proposition
Advancement of digital proficiency and opportunities for all, to fuel growth
and job creation in a sustainable way
It is widely understood that the effective adoption of modern ICT
(MICT) devices and applications has direct effect on GDP, on social
wellness and safety, on integrated government service delivery, and
social inclusion.
The Western Cape Government has taken the decision to roll out
Broadband throughout the region. Given this decision, greater efforts
are now needed to realise the uptake of MICT devices and applications for local benefit. Not only to grow an ‘informed customer’ base
for business, but also in fact for its life changing potential for
individual prosperity, self-reliance and growth.
The Cape Digital Foundation, a not-for-profit and non-governmental
agency, aims to harness this technology in ways that promote and
cement culture, independence, social identity, socio-economic
prosperity, innovation, creativity, employment opportunities, global
competitiveness and an elevated standing for South Africa on the
African continent. We aim to accomplish this through spearheading
the collaborative roll out of educational projects which ensure that
not only are all peoples in the Western Cape better equipped to make
use of ICT; but also aid in developing a better understanding regarding how having a handle on technology leads to the enhanced
potential for employment, with the knock on effect of both
sustainable job creation and of being self-sustaining.
1. Global Trends
1. Trends in the shift to an information society, and the impact of global digitisation, demonstrate that competitive
service delivery within the confines of a traditional and outdated structure renders it impossible for business,
education, government or nation states to operate in the national best interest.
Key global trends include:
1. The developing world, with more than half the world’s
population, provides the biggest opportunity for ‘new use’
users for many ICT providers and developers.
2. ICT development is converging, becoming more mobile,
more affordable, and more accessible in ways that suit the
developmental agendas of many countries.
3. There can be no sustainable progress in developing equal
opportunity within developmental states without the effective
uptake by society of ICT.
4. The rate of ubiquitous development of ICT is moving past
the current capacity for uptake by many societal, organisational and service delivery structures.
5. In stark contrast, the 2014 Global e-Readiness Index
Cape Digital Foundation Value Proposition 2015
highlights South Africa’s falling position in relation to other
developmental
states.
These trends are collectively and irrevocably changing the
fundamentals of many services, businesses and educational
approaches, as well as the established practice of governance, and the way in which life is led across much of society.
The negative impact found in lagging behind the global norm
is most likely to be greatest in locations where there is the
greatest fiscal disparity.
All analyses of the threats and opportunities inherent in
the necessary deployment of ICT, and in particular of the
implementation of broadband, point to the need for formal
mechanisms for collaboration across the stakeholder groups
i.e. organised Business, Government, Education, Community
and organised Labour – [sometimes known as the quadruple
helix approach].
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2. The Cape Digital Foundation
The Western Cape Government, through its Department of Economic Development and Tourism (DEDAT),
has facilitated the establishment of the Foundation. CDF is committed to capitalise on the development of
digital infrastructure as a means to bring about a connected economy.
The Foundation aims to:
• Better coordinate, integrate and aggregate the considerable array of existing digital and
e-readiness efforts across Government, Education, Business and Civil Society for the creation
of a connected economy in the Western Cape.
• Identify gaps, overlaps and implement various programmes aimed at the development of
skills for citizens and businesses, research and business development capabilities; and the
stimulation of usage and uptake of broadband service to support and promote a digital
Western Cape economy.
• Promote and leverage strategic partnerships with government, the private sector, civil
society, donor and community organisations to achieve the socio-economic broadband
objectives of the Western Cape; and to create models with a sustainable income that would
self-fund some of the broadband programmes.
• Generate funding for the broadband initiatives by tapping into government grants,
business corporate social investment budgets, and donations from local and global
organisations aimed at stimulating the usage and uptake of broadband services across
all aspects of society in the Western Cape.
• Aggregates for better alignment with the associated and implemented National and
Western Cape
• Digitisation legislation and policies within South Africa.
Thus addressing e-readiness in the Western Cape.
The Foundation is based on the core values of:
The Foundation aims to achieve this through:
• Collaboration (increased operational efficiency)
• Aggregation (benefits thereof)
• Building demand (incubation selling)
• Innovation i.e. proof of concepts (negotiate discounting structures
/ leverage CSI and marketing funds)
• Trust and Respect
• Innovation and Creativity
• Collaborative Partnerships
• Integrity
• Community and Citizen Focus
3. The Value Proposition
3.1 The position of the Foundation
• The Foundation provides a positive engagement with all stakeholder groups (locally, provincially and nationally)
represented by both leaders and project managers across Business, Education, Civil Society and other Government bodies.
• We have direct access to influence key goverment departments on the usage of ICTs in plans and programmes
to promote demand stimulation.
• With its established links with Government, Business, Education, Civil Society and Labour, the Foundation responds to
new market needs and demands in a coordinated environment.
• With establish links to University networks
within the province and across the world will help evaluate case study approaches, provide post graduate research
capacity and internships; and provide new approaches to skilling existing resources in ways that are more responsive to
emerging trends and technological development.
• Our approach to environmental scanning in a rapidly changing landscape through our platform allows us to more
adequately assess gaps, overlaps and opportunities for collaborative approaches.
Cape Digital Foundation Value Proposition 2015
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3.2 Opportunities that the Foundation provides for digital transition
The collaborative and coordinating approach of the Foundation provides new opportunities for Business, Goverment,
Education and Civil Society to:
• Refine policy settings within a more integrated approach that is innovating at a rate which is difficult for government
bodies to respond to within their planning, structural and accountability frameworks (discounting structure/CSI and
marketing budgets).
• Test new approaches to service delivery within a safe environment that has broad technical, practice and policy
support across business, service delivery agencies, education and local community (innovation).
• Develop and test new products and services in protected environments with access to academic case study
approaches with University researchers and students (under graduate and post graduate) Government managers/
programmes and business knowledge and experience (building demand/incubation selling).
• Develop a formal process to more effectively engage with government from a collective stakeholder stance around
practice, evaluation, policy development, research needs, new approaches to vertically and horizontally integrated
efforts for a connected economy (collaboration).
• Establish and embed innovative and creative approaches to the development of capacity with a view addressing
inequality, to building increasing self-reliance, to creating jobs in a connected economy; using socially appropriate
MICT devices and applications to improve productivity in existing sectors, applying MICT devices and applications to
health, education & lifelong learning, crime reduction, social responsibility, rural development and integrated service
delivery (innovation/aggregation).
Cape Digital Foundation Value Proposition 2015
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