SITA’s retrospection has paid off, claims Gijima

The South African State IT Agency (SITA) has recently reflected on its progress and identified significant areas that require attention as it charts its course for developing the country's digital ecosystem. This revelation was shared by Christo Abrahams, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Gijima, during a presentation at the 20th annual GovTech 2026 event held in Durban, South Africa.

The 2026 program transitioned from conceptualizing the digital vision to implementing it, with a focus on quantifiable outcomes, institutional accountability, and a sovereign capability that directly serves the citizens.

The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies, in collaboration with the Public Service Commission, recently concluded an investigation into governance, procurement irregularities, operational inefficiencies, and their adverse effects on service delivery at SITA. The findings revealed several issues, including irregular procurement practices, inconsistent consequence management, and excessive expenditure.

Despite these challenges, SITA has demonstrated a commitment to rectifying its mistakes and is now poised to invite stakeholders from the digital transformation ecosystem to collaborate in fostering digital sovereignty and advancing the ecosystem.

However, Abrahams emphasized that the discourse surrounding sovereignty extends beyond data residency. He clarified that data residency, while important, does not equate to sovereignty. The critical question remains: is the government prepared to assert its jurisdiction over the ecosystem and the data residing within it? Abrahams highlighted several factors that must be considered, such as determining who has access, who owns the critical data, where the data is encrypted, where login credentials are stored, and who manages and operates the system.

Abrahams pointed out that by having its government cloud infrastructure built and implemented with the assistance of multinational technology companies IBM and Huawei, SITA has been able to consolidate government ICT infrastructure and provide a shared, secure platform for departments. However, the cost of digital dependence on ICT companies domiciled in other nations, subject to their laws, has become increasingly worrisome.

These concerns include security risks, compromised autonomy in financial decisions, and geopolitical risks, which could result in data being held hostage or manipulated.

Furthermore, Abrahams noted that many government departments, particularly at the local municipality level, have separately entered into software contracts with Western-based software companies, leading to data being housed on cloud systems with servers located outside South Africa. The cost of repatriating this information can be prohibitive, and the ongoing annual renewal of software licenses results in billions of rands being spent, as reported by the Industrial Development Corporation. Abrahams stressed that it is high time to address these issues.

Roberta Gumede, deputy CEO of Gijima, echoed the sentiment that securing digital sovereignty, or the ability to exercise self-determination over digital data, infrastructure, platforms, and the governing rules, is crucial for state security. Gumede stressed that digital sovereignty encompasses a wide range of considerations, from preventing election interference to ensuring that government remains in control of its infrastructure and does not become overly dependent on non-owned resources.