SMMEs get training to be Internet Service Providers

SANews.gov.za

SMMEs get training to be Internet Service Providers
SMMEs get training to be Internet Service Providers

One of the interventions prioritized for implementation in the 2018/19 financial year is the establishment of 30 Small, Medium and Micro-sized Enterprises (SMMEs) as Internet Service Providers and resellers of domain names.

“This programme would target existing SMMEs and potential entrepreneurs; and the recruitment process will be publicized through the department’s website,” said Telecommunications and Postal Services Deputy Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams.

She said the implementation process involves training these beneficiaries on appropriate technical skills by ZA Domain Name Authority (ZADNA) and incubation through Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) for a period of six months.

These SMMEs will thereafter be linked to available business opportunities in the department’s SOCs such as Broadband Infraco.

ZADNA is an entity of the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services as well as a not for profit organisation which manages and regulates the .za namespace.

On Tuesday, Deputy Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams launched the Domain Name Registration Platform in Sandton, Johannesburg.

The platform allows South African companies to register domain names at cost price through the Companies and Intellectual Properties Commission (CIPC).

ZADNA and CIPC have collaborated to develop a system that integrates company registration and domain name registration.

This partnership makes it easier and more convenient for users of the CIPC platform to register .za domain names that match their company names.

The cost of domain registration on this platform is only R51.75, this being the current cost price charged to ZADNA’s accredited registrars. In an effort to afford CIPC users the added service of .za domain name registration, CIPC has therefore been accredited as a non-commercial .za registrar.

“The partnership between CIPC and the ZADNA is in line with the National Integrated White Paper Policy that alludes to SMME development and support. This collaboration will enable SMME’s to be able to have a domain name and website at the onset of company registration thereby supporting SMME’s development,” Deputy Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams said.

As part of accelerating the implementation of the Preferential Procurement Regulations of April 2017, the department will continue to monitor the awarding of tenders, in particular, the implementation of the 30% set-aside for ICT SMMEs by its internal Supply Chain Unit, SOCs and the ICT sector at large.

An Integrated Annual Report on ICT SMME Development would be produced at the end of each financial year.

Acting CIPC Commissioner Andre Kritzinger said one of the key things that drive the entity is to make business easy to do and reduce the barriers of entry to SMMEs.

“To date, we have registered about a 1000 domain names through our website and through our self service centres which are based in Pretoria, Johannesburg and Durban,” he said.

Kritzinger said the initiative indicates the commitment to bring much needed services to emerging SMMEs as they form the key to economic progress in the country. – SAnews.gov.za

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