The promise of smart cities in South Africa is alive and well, a recent deep dive into the topic by Vodacom Business demonstrated at the Johannesburg Country Club in Woodmead.

There, the company unpacked its commitment to digitalising critical enterprise sectors, explaining that Vodacom Business is working with local governments to provide technology solutions to help make South African cities smarter.

Announcing the partnership, which forms part of a five-year Transversal Contract with the National Treasury, Vodacom Business showcased the significant role digital solutions can play in enabling municipalities to deliver services efficiently and build an inclusive future.

“We have a proven track record in partnering with the public sector to deliver transformative digital solutions. We aim to use our experience and expertise in understanding government needs to achieve their smart city goals. This includes digitalising utilities management, healthcare, education and security, which streamline operations, enhance efficiencies and improve the lives of citizens,” explained Videsha Proothveerajh, Director of Vodacom Business.

She noted that we are living in an age where change is not just the norm, but is quickly becoming exponential. ''That means that only those who are innovative and able to adopt new things, that are able to change and step ahead of the curve are well positioned to end up thriving, and not just surviving. And we've also unfortunately seen  the laggards that then have been very risk averse, and they've ended up on the other side of this curve,'' she added. 

Proothveerajh  continued that one undeniable change is how boundaries have merged technology, services and products.

 ‘’To prosper in this new environment, how we do things and what we do becomes very key, and so does collaboration and partnerships. We're living in a world where no company can claim to do it all by themselves, so collaborating and making sure we have the best partners has become critical.

‘’if we want to change the fabric of our organizations, and really embrace this disruption, we must shift from being owners and builders to becoming facilitators and stewards of technology. Gone are the days where you own this IP and you held it back. Now, we must become facilitators of technology and help others use it to enable people to live better lives,’’ she stressed.

The question arises then what does this look like on a practical level? Vodacom Business’s answer was that it began with using digital solutions to help municipalities manage the consumption and delivery of services, such as water and electricity.

To this end, Vodacom Business offers a smart utilities management system, which makes use of connected smart meters to provide real-time information on consumption. This can also help to improve accurate billing and revenue collection for residents and has been extended to include fleet management – saving the municipalities costs and enhancing the lifespan, value and efficiency of their assets.

To further enhance service delivery, Vodacom Business explained that it has also developed and deployed the Citizen Engagement app, which enables two-way communication and collaboration between citizens and municipalities, including logging service requests and tracking their progress.

But Vodacom Business’s offerings don’t only address one arena. Rather, the company’s solution spans across several other crucial verticals, such as health care, education and security.

We were shown how technology has been effectively leveraged as a solution for improving critical access to healthcare. Apps, such as the secure, cloud-based Stock Visibility Solution (SVS) by Vodacom Business, can strengthen stock-level monitoring and administration by healthcare facilities to deliver greater efficiency and medication-dispensing responses.

For better patient care, there is AitaHealth. This is a smartphone-based platform that empowers Community Health Workers (CHWs) to deliver preventative care services to communities on a home-based level. Other digital initiatives from Vodacom Business to support public healthcare delivery include the Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system, which allows users to track ambulance requests from the moment a call is logged all the way through to the final delivery of the patients at their destination.

We were also shown how an augmented reality headset could be used to enhance and augment medical procedures, and enable doctors to access information while doing procedures while keeping their hands free.  

In the education space, Vodacom Business showcased how it has developed digital solutions to support education departments and schools with more streamlined e-admissions, as well as bridging the communication gap between schools, district management and provincial offices for greater visibility. 

Vodacom’s e-learning uses mobile technology to help improve the learning experience both in and out of the classroom, supporting the government’s goal to improve educational outcomes in South Africa.

During one of its demonstrations of the technology platform and mobile app, the company affirmed that this technology could help students in the event of another lockdown situation akin to what we saw during the height of the Covid pandemic, which presented a setback for students in their education.

Vodacom Business then addressed another critical arena in South Africa, that of safety and security. To address this critical need, it has developed various IoT security solutions, such as real-time firearm tracking and geo-fencing to enhance public sector security services. Body-worn cameras facilitate real-time video transmission to central locations, enabling live monitoring during critical situations and providing evidentiary proof for incident management.

“As Vodacom celebrates its 30th anniversary, Vodacom Business remains committed to transforming enterprises of every size to change lives and ensure that no one is left behind in the digital future. By enabling the growth of smart cities, we are turning public services into public successes and supporting the government to utilise the power of technology to better serve citizens and create an inclusive digital society in South Africa,” concluded Proothveerajh.