The Sunday Mail
President Mnangagwa recently appointed long-serving civil servant and Information Communication Technology (ICT) expert Dr Beaullah Chirume (BC) Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of ICT, Postal and Courier Services.
The Sunday Mail’s TANYARADZWA RUSIKE (TR) spoke to Dr Chirume about her appointment and vision for the development of the ICT sector in Zimbabwe.
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TR: Can you outline the significance of your recent redeployment?
BC: It’s an absolute honour and humbling experience to serve my beloved country at this high level.
ICTs are an enabler to the development of any society, and being afforded a chance to lead and participate in the betterment of our citizens’ lives through the transformation of Zimbabwe into a digitally-enabled society and ultimately an upper middle-income economy by the year 2030 is both exciting and challenging.
I am very thankful to the Almighty and the appointing authorities for according me this invaluable opportunity.
This appointment is also a clear testimony of the commitment of the political leadership in this country to promote gender equality in influential and decision-making positions in the civil service.
This elevation should also inspire young girls and women in the country and beyond.
They should know that it is possible and that they can also rise if they apply themselves consistently in their studies and work diligently.
TR: Which areas of ICT development will you lend your urgent attention to as you commence your new duties?
BC: We have a national vision to transform the country into an upper middle-income economy by 2030 and our economic blueprint, the National Development Strategy 1, clearly articulates the priority areas for Government, chief among them being development of the digital economy.
Therefore, my priorities must be aligned to this national strategy. In this regard, the growth of the ICT sector is therefore of paramount importance given the catalytic role of ICTs in the socio-economic development of this country. The focus is therefore anchored on providing convenience in services through ICTs.
I would also want to see internet penetration in the country moving upwards from the current 63,1 percent to cover the entire length and width of this country.
Our scores and ranking in indices such as the ICT Development Index and the E-government Development Index, which stand at 2,92 (ranking 135) and 0,502 (ranking 126) (2020), respectively, must be improved.
We are also now in the Fourth Industrial Revolution where 4G and 5G have become handy in terms of speed, efficiency and reliability.
They also enable us to adopt emerging technologies such as big data, the Internet of Things(IoT) and Artificial Intelligence(AI).
We are predominantly at 2G and 3G, providing 54,1 percent and 31,6 percent of coverage, respectively.
Currently, 4G is only at 14,3 percent coverage.
This anomaly needs to be rectified.
TR: What is your overarching vision for the ministry?
BC: To leave no place and no one behind in the digital space. My vision is to see a connected society that fully exploits the power of ICTs for national socio-economic development as stipulated in the National Development Strategy 1 (2021-2025).
Harnessing ICTs will significantly contribute to the attainment of an upper middle-income economy by 2030.
TR: What role do you envisage the ministry playing towards the attainment of Vision 2030?
BC: ICTs are a catalyst for the transformation of Zimbabwe into an upper middle-income economy by 2030.
This will be achieved through ICT access, utilisation, governance and industry development.
For a successful and inclusive digital economy, the Government of Zimbabwe has a number of plans to transform the country into a digital economy.
The need has also been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, where online platforms became key in communication and provision of services.
The key foundational elements of a digital economy include digital infrastructure, digital platforms, digital financial services, digital entrepreneurship and digital skills.
TR: Access to ICTs in the country remains skewed in favour of males. How do you plan to ensure equitable access for women and girls?
BC: I would look at women and girls from beyond the prism of ICT only.
Access to ICTs for women emanates from both economic and social empowerment.
As a starting point, therefore, I will support any programmes that seek to educate and economically empower women to take their place in the development of the country. I will also encourage and support women in taking up studies in ICT.
As a global society, we have to tackle the root causes of gender inequality.
There is need to address the literacy gap and break down the many varied barriers that keep girls out of school such as the preference of boys over girls where resources are not adequate. Quite a number of our women and girls are in marginalised communities. As such, there are gaps in ICT infrastructure and services in different urban areas and between urban and rural areas. This must be addressed to allow our women and girls access. ICT clubs and community networks will assist to close this gap.
I will push that the ministry and its stakeholders do more to empower youths, in particular girls, through the innovation drive resident at our regulator, Potraz (Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe). The fund is meant to support and promote young innovators in the country to develop their ideas and deploy their technical solutions for use in Zimbabwe and the global market.
TR: What is your assessment of the progress that has been made with regard to connecting marginalised communities?
BC: Marginalised communities must be connected.
ICTs are no longer a luxury; instead, they are fast becoming a human right which everyone must have access to. The world is becoming paperless and cashless, making ICTs a necessity for everyone.
It is pleasing to note that operators have done a lot to cover much of the country and are ensuring that communities have access to some ICT services.
We also have a number of projects where the ministry and Potraz are deploying passive infrastructure for base stations to areas which may not be economically viable to do so for our operators.
Operators will share this infrastructure and therefore provide connectivity to these marginalised areas. In addition, some of the collocated towers are being derigged to move them to places where such infrastructure for connectivity was not there.
Other projects to reduce the urban and rural divide are the Community Information Centres (CICs), which are meant to provide equitable access to ICTs for important information on education, health and agriculture, for instance. Out of the 170 CICs, mainly at post offices throughout the country, 24 of them are what we have christened Containerised Village Information Centres (CVICs) primarily deployed in villages to provide access to the marginalised.
Government is offering free Internet to the public at these facilities.
