In April, President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed 30 members to be part of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) Commission. The Commission is tasked to identify relevant policies, strategies and action plans that will position South Africa as a competitive global player in the digital industrial revolution.
Similarly to that, this week Gauteng Premier David Makhura, delivered the State of the Province Address (SOPA), where he laid out his plans to appoint an advisory panel that will advise the provincial government on 4IR for Gauteng.
According to IT Web, Makhura said that investing in internet connectivity will increase the province’s GDP by 1.5 percent, which will in turn improve service delivery to citizens and create new industries and provide new platforms for small businesses to integrate with the mainstream economy.
“Our dream is that Gauteng should be a hub of the 4IR skills and a centre of excellence for digital economy breakthroughs such as artificial intelligence, crypto and big data,” explained Makhura.
The Premier added that the panel is to be appointed within his first 100 days, indicating the province’s refusal to be left out of the fourth industrial revolution and the digital age.
“Over several decades we have been building a smart and techno-savvy Gauteng city region with an innovation ecosystem that includes the Gauteng Innovation Hub, public universities and research institutions, private sector centres of innovation and recently eKasi Labs,” added Makhura.
