PROPOSAL FOR FREE WIFI AS GROWTH ENABLER TO
ASSIST LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
IN INDIGENT COMMUNITIES
Free WiFi For Africa NPC, trading as Project Isizwe
NPO Registration 133-371 NPO
156 DORP STREET, STELLENBOSCH, 7600, SOUTH AFRICA
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................................... 2 OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................................ 3 THE DEVELOPMENTAL LOCAL GOVERNMENT CONTEXT .............................................. 4 THE LEGAL AND POLICY CONTEXT ................................................................................... 5 THE BENEFITS OF CONNECTIVITY .................................................................................... 6 LED MANDATE OF GOVERNMENT ..................................................................................... 7 HOW CAN THE THREE SPHERES OF GOVERNMENT CONTRIBUTE TO LED? ............. 8 HOW TO ADRESS THE LED MANDATE? ............................................................................ 8 WHAT ROLE CAN FREE WIFI PLAY TO SUPPORT LED? .................................................. 9 2
OVERVIEW
The President stated in the 2015 State of the Nation address the importance of
connectivity as a growth enabler. In today’s fast-paced, digital world, the average
South African is at a disadvantage, due to a lack of access to the Internet. There is
an enormous amount of services and information, accessible via the Internet that
supports informal learning, social inclusion and economic development that they are
excluded from. Free Internet Zones (FIZ)s offer a solution to this impasse.
Each FIZ will offer a WiFi hotspot, covering open public spaces that will allow
learners and community members to simply connect and surf using any WiFi
enabled device. Access to the Internet will bridge the digital divide, allow for 21st
Century blended learning, greatly improve communication and stimulate job creation.
The impact of this project has the potential to change the trajectory of South Africa’s
youth, building the leaders of tomorrow and encouraging them to become citizens of
the world. Keeping this in mind, it is critical to consider the developmental Local
Government premise of the Constitution.
3
THE DEVELOPMENTAL LOCAL GOVERNMENT CONTEXT
1
The White Paper on Local Government, 1998, defines developmental Local
Government as:
"...government committed to working with citizens and groups within the community to
find sustainable ways to meet their social, economic and material needs and improve
the quality of their lives".
This new and broad mandate for local government is in line with the objectives for
Local Government set out in the Constitution (1996) (see below). It seeks to address
the apartheid legacy which "has fundamentally damaged the spatial, economic and
social environments in which people live, work, raise families and seek to fulfil their
aspirations (White Paper)”. The previous Local Government system led to an
extremely uneven distribution of resources and distorted, fragmented patterns of
development. The eradication of these distortions and imbalances and the poverty
which flows from them is one of the greatest challenges facing Local Government.
Developmental Local Government should adopt a strategic, creative and integrated
approach to local governance to address this challenge. It involves actively seeking
partnerships with all role-players that contribute to the development of an area including other organs of state, the private sector and communities - in order that
municipalities can fulfil their core responsibilities in a way that has a lasting and
profoundly positive impact on the quality of life of the people they serve.
1
(Quoted from the Document Democratic Local Government 2000 -‐ 2001: A Guide for Councillors, published by National Business Initiative, December 2000) 4
THE LEGAL AND POLICY CONTEXT
2
The Constitution (S152) puts in place a vision for developmental Local Government
and contains the objectives for developmental Local Government:
•
To provide democratic and accountable Government for local communities
•
To ensure the provision of services to communities in a sustainable manner
•
To promote social and economic development
•
To promote a safe and healthy environment
•
To encourage the involvement of communities and community organisations in the
matters of Local Government.
In terms of the Constitution, the White Paper and the legislation flowing from it,
municipalities are required to structure and manage their administration and budgeting
and planning processes to give priority to the basic needs or the community, to
promote the social and economic development of the community and to participate in
national and provincial development programmes.
Municipalities must provide vision and leadership for all those who have a role to play
in the development of a municipality. They should lever investment and resources
and ensure integration and co-ordination between various role players. They are
henceforth directly responsible for creating conditions conducive to job creation and
must fulfil their mandate of service delivery in a way that achieves social, economic
and ecological sustainability.
2 (Quoted from the Document Democratic Local Government 2000 -‐ 2001: A Guide for Councillors, published by National Business Initiative, December 2000) 5
According to the White Paper, truly developmental local governance should ultimately
result in the following outcomes:
•
The provision of household infrastructure and services
•
The creation of liveable integrated cities, towns and rural areas
•
Local economic development
•
Community empowerment and redistribution.
Connectivity can help to address the developmental mandate of Local Government
and bring COGTA’s strategic goals in alignment with the President and Government’s
vision expounded in the National Development Plan.
THE BENEFITS OF CONNECTIVITY
The benefits of the Internet are of greatest value to those living in rural areas, and yet
these same citizens suffer from the slowest speeds and highest prices.
•
LED PERSPECTIVE: The World Bank estimates that for every 10% of broadband
penetration there is 1, 28% increase in GDP.
•
COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION: General access to information. Engaging with citizens
in rural areas in order to ascertain service delivery priorities and gain feedback on
governance is traditionally very difficult. Internet access allows for real-time
conversations and feedback via mobile phones.
The well-documented consequences of Internet access are as follows:
6
LED MANDATE OF GOVERNMENT
Section 152(c) of the Constitution state that one of the primary objects of Local
Government is to promote social and economic development. According to the
SALGA LED handbook for Councillors, the National Planning Commission found the
key social, economic and political challenges facing South Africa
1. Too few South Africans are employed-high unemployment contributes to
widespread poverty. Only 41% of South Africans between the ages of 18 and
60 work. International norms are closer to 66%.
2. Quality of education for poor black South Africans is low. School enrolment,
numeracy and literacy scores are extremely low compared to international
standards.
3. South Africa’s growth path is highly resource-intensive and hence
unsustainable.
4. Poorly located and inadequate infrastructure limits social inclusion and faster
economic growth.
5. Spatial challenges continue to marginalize the poor.
6. The ailing public health system is confronted by a massive disease burden.
7. The performance by the public service is uneven.
8. Corruption undermines state legitimacy and service delivery.
9. South Africa remains a divided society.
According to the report, the challenges of high unemployment and quality of education
are “the most pressing”. The role that Local Government can play in LED will alleviate
some of these challenges by creating a climate of growth and opportunity.3
3 SA
LED Network, SALGA, 2014:09
7
HOW CAN THE THREE SPHERES OF GOVERNMENT CONTRIBUTE
TO LED?
1. Direct employment
2. Special employment schemes
3. Procurement of goods and services
4. Production of goods and services such as electricity, education and healthcare.
5. Financing employers outside the state to encourage increased or diversified
production.
6. Regulatory frameworks that encourage production and reduce red tape.
7. Creating a stable, equitable, law-abiding and mobilized society which is the
crucial framework for sustainable economic development.4
HOW TO ADRESS THE LED MANDATE?
According the SALGA legal opinion on LED to the Cape Winelands DM: “Given that
the purpose of local economic development (LED) can be expanded to include:
1. Creating an enabling environment which local people and institutions can make
realistic and practical decisions that strengthen the local economy, create more
jobs, promote new enterprise, including self-employment and to improve the
quality and prospects of life for all.
2. Building developmental Local Government engages more directly where
possible in creating jobs and building the economy.
There can, as a result be little doubt that local economic development is a Local
Government function in keeping with the purposive interpretation of the Schedules and
the development character of local government under the new constitutional
dispensation”.5
4 SA LED Network, SALGA, 2014:10 5 SA LED Network, SALGA, 2014:21 8
WHAT ROLE CAN FREE WIFI PLAY TO SUPPORT LED?
The developmental and LED mandate of local government clearly speak to the need
for connectivity as a solution and growth enabler (recognized in the SONA by
President Zuma). 6A research paper by Deloitte found that connectivity enables
economic growth in developing countries “by providing access to information,
The direct result of connectivity is:
1. Improved human resources qualification and specialisation
2. Facilitation of entrepreneurship and business expansion; access to new markets
3. Enhanced speed and quality of information flow results in reduced transaction costs
4. Greater innovation and adoption of new organisational models and business
processes
5. Enhanced access to financial capital with services such as mobile banking
connecting people to businesses everywhere and opening up new markets, the
internet can transform the very nature of the economy and support economic
development.” Internet access enhances the productivity of labour and capital through
information flow, innovation, financial capital access, entrepreneurship and
labour enhancement. Project Isizwe, a Non-Profit Organisation came up with an innovative solution to offer
free WiFi as a basic service and growth enabler. Project Isizwe and its approach to
facilitate the establishment of Free Internet Zones is detailed in the accompanying
information. A partnership with Isizwe will result in increased levels of connectivity,
affordable WiFi and the envisaged outcomes of LED. 6 Deloitte, Value of Connectivity,2014 :3 9