The capacity challenges at the State Information Technology Agency (Sita) needs to be attended to as a matter of urgency, says the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training.
The committee, which visited the agency, said Sita was one entity that needed not to fail as the world was entering the digital era.
The committee was informed that Sita hosts all the transversal systems that government uses, but some were outdated and complex to operate.
It also heard that the challenge with the certification backlogs for many TVET colleges has been reduced significantly.
“South Africa should move with the times and Sita should be an enabler for such a transition. Production of certificates should be seamless and within reasonable time. Poor children, especially if they pass, should not be held back by lack of certificates,” Acting Chairperson for the Committee Danny Kekana said on Tuesday.
The committee is on a week-long oversight visit to Pretoria where it will visit, among other places, the Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University and a number of Sector Education and Training.
“The committee welcomes what it has witnessed at Sita and the systems they are using, but more work needs to be done in order to keep up with the pace of digitisation and technological advances. The progress Sita has made on many fronts, particularly when it comes to education departments, is something to marvel on,” added Kekana.
Meanwhile, the committee’s oversight visit, at the Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University in Garankuwa this morning, will get insight into the governance and management of the university, challenges in the provision of the health sciences-related programmes, and financial performance of the university. – SAnews.gov.za
