Microsoft South Africa and the eThekwini Municipality have announced details of a public private partnership (PPP).
Aiming to transform itself into the technology hub of Africa, the city of Durban is forming strategic relationships designed to further stimulate the regional economy and attract investment.
With the aim of further equipping independent software vendors (ISVs) in the region, Microsoft will be investing in an African ISV Centre to be based at the SmartXchange premises. The center will allow for African ISV businesses to design and build software products using Microsoft technologies and gleaning guidance from Microsoft personnel. Besides providing training, technologies, and technical expertise, the facility is also intended to create an environment for simulation, so that developers may test software applications as if they were deployed in a live customer environment.
In addition, the company will further increase its investment in SmartXchange, an incubation center, by way of software to each tenant company. A key part of its business is to provide a software platform and tools that enable other software companies to build their own applications. Volunteers from the tenant companies have committed to assisting several digital villages in the area in the form of training and experience to further extend the benefits of technology in the surrounding communities.
"SA, and particularly KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) has the potential of producing high quality software products that could surpass local needs and become a source of export income," says Jean-Philippe Courtois, Microsoft EMEA CEO. "Studies have demonstrated the key contribution ISV developers make to sustaining growth and development of the ICT sector and so positively impact the economy. Not only are ISVs a crucial part of the commercial software ecosystem and a central element to our business model, they are also key to the development of local skills."
On the successful completion of LogoSoft, a financial management system aimed at local government, Microsoft will look to certify the ERP solution as a preferred product on a global basis. Produced locally, LogoSoft is a prime example of effective PPPs stimulating the local software economy, and achieving a balance between software consumption and production.
"The IT business community in Durban recognizes that the sustainability of Durban as a technology hub will depend on its ability to attract investment in the region, further create jobs, increase levels of innovation and maintain a pool of highly skilled resources in the region," says Dr Mike Sutcliffe, eThekwini Municipality city manager.