South Africa’s digital transformation is stalling because the government agency responsible for buying and delivering technology is struggling to do its own job.
Findings of a Public Service Commission (PSC) investigation, released on Monday, have revealed systemic failures at the State Information Technology Agency (SITA), the country’s digital backbone, where procurement delays and leadership instability have slowed the delivery of critical Information and Communications Technology (ICT) systems across government.
The probe, commissioned by Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi in December 2024, paints a picture of an institution whose operational failures have become a national digital transformation risk. While more than R2 billion ($123 million) in irregular expenditure over four audited financial years has attracted attention, the report revealed that the bigger problem is an organisation unable to consistently procure, manage and deliver technology for the government.
“This report is difficult reading, but it is necessary reading,” Malatsi said on Monday when releasing the findings alongside PSC chairperson Professor Somadoda Fikeni. “SITA is the state’s central ICT engine. When SITA fails, departments wait longer for the systems they need, budgets are placed under pressure, and citizens ultimately experience the consequences through poorer public services.”
