Govt emphasises need to invest in ICT

Minister of information who is also government spokesperson Nicholas Dausi has emphasised the need for the country to invest in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) structures.

Dausi was speaking at the official opening of the 3rd Southern African Development Community (SADC) preparatory meeting for World Radio Communication Conference (WRC) at the Bingu International Convention Centre (BICC) in Lilongwe.

The minister said there is need for the government and its people to put more efforts towards harmonizing the ICT industry in the country.

He added that the meeting was vital for enhancing the radio spectrum which he described as a finite resource that needed to be handled with sober minds because in the long run it would be depleted yet there will be other ICT innovations which will need the spectrum for them to operate.

The Director of Telecommunications and Postal Services at the Ministry of Transport and Communication in Botswana, who also spoke on behalf of the SADC Communication Committee, Itumeleng Batsalelwang, said the gathering was important to harmonize spectrum frequencies.

“Frequency spectrum is essential when it comes to ICT because for radios and television stations, and telecommunications to operate, they need spectrum so the SADC region should come together and put their ideas so that there should not be interferences into other territories frequency wise,” he said.

Batsalelwang further said the region should divide roles so that there should not be conflict of interest when each country is given a specific role to play in enhancing the ICT sector.

He observed that coordinated planning would bring about excellent results in managing the spectrum in the SADC region.

World Radio Communication conferences are held every three years with the aim of reviewing and if necessary, revising the radio regulations, the international treaty governing the use of radio frequency spectrum and many more other issues.