Parliament, Thursday, 9 November 2017 – The Portfolio Committee on Telecommunications and Postal Services on Tuesday welcomed a presentation from the Department on the aggressive rapid development and provisioning of electronic communications facilities across the country.
The Chairperson of the Committee, Mr Jabu Mahlangu, remarked that the rapid deployment of electronic communication is crucial to close the divide between wealthy and poor, urban and rural.
He said the roll out of these programmes and projects will harmonise, simplify and minimise the hurdles confronting the service delivery of communication infrastructure, and thus ensure equality in access and affordability to all.
“The plan will create more opportunities in infrastructure, such as roads, rail networks, tunnels, walkways and storm-water drainage systems in the deployment of electronic communication networks. It will thus reduce the hurdles and the time it takes to process applications for infrastructure development,” said Mr Mahlangu.
The Committee also welcomed the commitment by the Department to establish a rapid deployment coordination centre, which will unlock hurdles in the quest to achieve universal access. The centre will provide for national, provincial and municipal players in a coordinated manner to address service delivery delays.
Mr Mahlangu called on private business, landowners and municipalities to collaborate with the Department to unlock an industry that is crucial in addressing inequalities in communities, in order to meet the National Development Plan objectives.
ISSUED BY PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON, MR JABU MAHLANGU
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Name: Mr Justice Molafo
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Cell: 081 424 7481
Email: jmolafo@parliament.gov.za
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