17 Feb 2019

Botswana Innovation Hub (BIH) procured 13 software systems including applications in the past four years.

Assistant Minister of Tertiary Education, Research, Science and Technology, Mr Fidelis Molao said this when answering a question in Parliament.

He said the companies that supplied the software systems and applications were Gifted Design Systems, ICL Botswana, EOH Consulting, IT Worx, 4Most, Dimension Data Botswana, Bytes Technology Group, Sound Edit Creations and Velis IT Systems.

Mr Molao said of the aforementioned companies, the following were wholly or partially citizen owned, Gifted Design Systems, ICL Botswana, EOH Consulting, IT Worx, Sound Edit Creations and Dimension Data Botswana, while other companies being 4Most, Bytes Technology Group and Velis IT Systems were not owned by citizens.

The assistant minister said there were seven citizen owned companies under BIH’s First Steps Venture Capital programme that BIH engaged to provide solutions and full details of the names of the companies, solutions provided and amount paid to BIH had been listed.

He further noted that there was an innovation support framework at BIH which promoted engagement of its incubated ICT start-ups to provide innovative solutions both for public and private sector entities.

“BIH also advocates for an innovation procurement framework to support innovators so that they could achieve market access both in private and public sectors,”he said.Mr Molao was answering specially elected MP, Mr Mephato Reatile who had asked the minister to state the names and number of software systems including applications that had been procured by BIH, and the cost of each software system and application for the past four years.

He further wanted to know the names of the companies that supplied software systems and application, and whether those companies were citizen or foreign owned.

Mr Reatile also wanted to know if there were companies under the First Steps Venture Centre programme that had been engaged to provide solutions to BIH and the names of the companies and the value of each contract.He enquired if there was an intention to have a policy in place that enforced and promoted the use of local innovation companies. ENDS