President Ramaphosa launches new Huawei Innovation Center

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