Pretoria – The Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) says allegations made by the Mail & Guardian on the department’s capability to deliver professional bulk buying services are untrue and misleading.
In a statement on Friday, the GCIS reiterated that it has over the years provided and continues to provide a professional and successful media buying service to its clients.
Between1999 and 2009, this function was done through outsourced services. GCIS began in-house media buying in September 2009.
“The decision was taken to realise the economies of scale as originally envisaged, create capacity within GCIS and to promote media diversity by ensuring that a portion of advertising is allocated to the community based media,” it said.
The decision to build in-house capacity has started yielding positive results with a cost of R30 million being saved in the last financial year. GCIS has also built an excellent working relationship with various media houses regarding the procurement of media space.
Over the last two years, the GCIS media buying service client base has grown from 22 clients to 42 clients, composed of national departments, state owned companies, provinces and municipalities, billing in excess of R240m per annum. R37 million, of this amount went to community based media.
Acting GCIS CEO, Phumla Williams, said: “The GCIS centralised media bulk buying function has professionalised media buying in government through the implementation of industry standard tools and training interventions to champion more efficient use of government communications expenditure.”
Through the unit, GCIS participates actively in industry associations to further the professionalisation of the discipline of media planning and buying, with particular attention paid to ensuring the development of community media.
GCIS said it would continue to support the financial viability of a diverse community media sector, by placing adverts in community media. It would also continue to strengthen the working relations with the various media platforms to disseminate the government voice.
On the matter between StatsSA and GCIS regarding the advertising of the 2011 Census, this issue was currently before the court and subjudice. “GCIS will therefore, not comment on this issue,” the statement said. – SAnews.gov.za
