LIVINGSTONE MARUFU
The Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ) has moved to accelerate the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) access in order to navigate Covid-19 induced lockdowns and push for the digital economy.
The world had been put to test by Covid-19 and many economies realised that speeding up technology could help to grow the economy during the pandemic era.
Various local institutions have been pushing the digitisation drive but Covid-19 has accelerated the pace.
Speaking at the launch of the 2020 ICT Access by Households and Use by Individuals Survey prepared by Zimstat, POTRAZ director general Gift Machengete said the digital economy has become the buzzword across the world as it is believed to be the hallmark of success for any serious nation going into the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
“With the government embracing the digital economy as one of the key pillars for economic growth, as the regulator, we shall continue to align our surveys to evolving policy needs and priorities,” Machengete said.
Machengete said POTRAZ will facilitate surveys on emerging priorities such as e-commerce, e-government, e-education, privacy and security issues as well as child online protection and digital skills indicators in a more comprehensive way.
Such surveys will facilitate informed strategising and interaction in mapping the way forward to achieve the targets of the National Development Strategy 1 and the attainment of National Vision 2030.
The Covid-19 pandemic that the nation is currently grappling with has awakened people to realise the important role that ICTs can play in mitigating the disruption of life that comes with such chronic diseases, Machengete said.
He said the launch, which was done virtually, is an example of how ICT can be useful during Covid-19.
“We are still working, shopping, praising and worshipping together, children are still learning, and we are still getting entertained at home. Life is moving on, thanks to ICTs! Without ICTs, everything would have come to a standstill! As such, let us all embrace ICTs,” he said.
According to the report, the use of the internet from any location by individuals on August 1 2020 to October 31, 2020, the countrywide proportion of users was 29.3% from 16.4% in 2014.
