President Ramaphosa launches new Huawei Innovation Center
Date: 2023-07-13
The
President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa has joined the President of Huawei
Sub-Sahara Africa, Will Cheng to officially unveil the new Huawei Innovation
Center, in Johannesburg.
The new
center is expected to foster and encourage joint innovations with Huawei’s
South Africa partners, app developers and SMME’s in the ICT space.
Speaking
during a brief ceremony, President Ramaphosa noted that digital innovation is
inextricably linked to a nation’s development, adding that for South Africa, expanding digital infrastructure is one of the primary engines of economic
growth.
“The development of Information Technology is key to the
competitiveness of our economy,” he
stated.
According
to him, not only can new digital technology such as AI, Big Data, and Machine
Learning provide a platform for economic growth, job creation, and self-employment, but they can also vastly improve government service delivery.
“The application of digital technologies to improve
production processes spans a broad range of economic sectors from mining to
ports to transportation and others. Last year, for example, the first 5G coal
mine was launched in South Africa through a partnership with Huawei, its carrier, and industry partners,” President Ramaphosa
confirmed.
He then
acknowledged that the center is a signal of Huawei’s confidence in South Africa's
economy and its potential, noting again that the digital technology and
business services sector in South Africa are key pillars of South Africa’s
investment strategy.
“To stimulate investment in these sectors, we have focused on
several structural reforms. The actions we have taken include the auction of the high-demand spectrum that took place last year, which alongside digital
migration will significantly expand access to broadband and bring down data
cost,” he added.
By: Nana Appiah Acquaye
