Acting Director General of the ICT Commission (ICTC), Engineer Samson Mwela
The move is aimed at bringing sanity to
the industry that is progressing rapidly and posing a threat to
sensitive areas of the economy and country.
“Given the advancement of technology, it
is prudent to accredit practitioners in the industry; the digital
industry is very sensitive and thus the need for qualified and
accredited experts,” the Acting Director General of the ICT Commission
(ICTC), Engineer Samson Mwela, told the ‘Daily News’ in an interview.
The commission is an institution under
the Ministry of Works, Transport and Communication charged with
promoting ICT and on the other hand mandated to develop ICT profession
in Tanzania through accreditation and competence.
“We are currently drafting a framework
for registration and accreditation of professionals in the industry;
this aims at recognising their expertise and respective categories as it
is in other careers such as engineering,” he stated.
There will be three categories of
accredited practitioners in the industry, he explained, noting that the
highest grouping will be made of highly trained professional
consultants. Eng Mwela said the commission is working with international
organisations in drafting the framework to set standards which will
enable accredited local ICT experts to be recognised in other countries
globally.
“The commission has so far received
applications from 800 professionals for accreditation, but the exercise
cannot be conducted at present until the framework and legislation are
in place,” Eng Mwela explained.
According to him, other countries in the
East African region namely Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda have institutions
for accrediting ICT experts although they operate in different
arrangement compared to that to be adopted by Tanzania.
“Accreditation is now being undertaken
in many countries in the world including South Africa and Australia, ICT
experts are responsible for creating computer software and handling
sensitive information and hence they have to be certified,” he observed.
The principles of professional
accreditation in the ICT industry, according to the expert, will feature
high during the Annual ICT Professionals Conference to be held next
week at the Julius Nyerere International Convention Centre (JNICC) in
Dar es Salaam.
“We expect that experts at the
conference will give their views on the best way of implementing the
accreditation exercise; once the framework is finalised, it will as well
provide for professional upgrading to improve their skills,” he
explained.
He admitted on the other hand that there
are people working in the ICT industry, but lack qualifications and
skills, noting that the envisaged arrangement will create an industry of
only qualified specialists.
The conference next week will carry the
theme; ‘Building Tanzania’s Digital Industrial Economy,’ and it is
expected to attract participants from the government, private sector,
academia and research communities from across the country and abroad.
“Apart from being a production line
itself, the digital industry has a vital role in the industrial economy
being championed by the Fifth Phase Government to attain middle-income
economy by 2025; modern factories being set up are highly reliant on
ICT,” he pointed.
There will be presentations from local
and international ICT experts on issues such as trust and confidence in
the digital industrial economy, challenges and opportunities in evolving
technologies, digital agenda for Tanzania as well as the role of
private sector in mobilising ICT for development.
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