DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania,
July 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM
(NYSE: IBM) today signed a collaboration agreement with the
Tanzanian Ministry of Communication, Science and Technology to help
accelerate the adoption of technology as part of Tanzania's ongoing development and strategy to
increase its competitiveness in East
Africa.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090416/IBMLOGO
)
IBM will work with the Tanzanian Government to help achieve its
vision of becoming a hub for trade in the wider East Africa region and to enhance sustainable
economic development as outlined in the Tanzania National ICT
Policy.
"This agreement supports the goals of the National ICT
Commission to use innovative technologies and approaches to
transform our infrastructures, build national data centers,
increase cyber-security and invest in IT talent development," said
Honourable Prof. Makame M. Mbarawa, the Minister for Communication,
Science and Technology. "Working with IBM will help to ensure that
our initiatives are in line with international standards while
positioning us to become competitive regionally and
internationally."
IBM and the Government of Tanzania will co-operate to support the
country's National ICT agenda developing simplified and more
effective social and administrative systems for e-Government,
e-Health and e-Education among other areas.
"IBM is a long-standing partner to the Tanzanian government and
we are committed to supporting the country's economic growth and
technical advancement," said Dr. Mark
Dean, Chief Technology Officer and IBM Fellow, IBM Middle
East and Africa. "A key part of
our strategy in Africa is to build
skills and a culture of innovation across the continent."
One of the focus areas of the agreement will be the port of Dar
es Salaam which is the main point for Tanzania's imports and exports. The port also
serves the neighboring landlocked countries of Zambia, Malawi, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. By working with
IBM, the Tanzanian government will explore the use of innovative
technologies and approaches to help the port to operate more
efficiently, transform revenue collection processes and strengthen
regional trade links.
The agreement underscores IBM's commitment to Africa and builds on a similar agreement
signed in March 2010 between IBM and
the Tanzania Ministry of Education and Vocational Training to
support the adoption of IT in the areas of education, research and
development.
Significant progress has been made since that earlier agreement,
including the provision of international guest lecturers, three
academic awards, the donation of 37,000 technical reference books
and journals to the University of Dodoma and the Dar es Salaam
Institute of Technology, as well as international co-operation with
Tanzanian academics.
IBM has also been actively engaged in Tanzania through its Corporate Service Corps
program. Since 2009, 88 talented emerging leaders from more than 25
different countries have worked on one month assignments to
Tanzania in projects aimed at
social and economic development. Through this program IBM has
dedicated over 10,000 hours of pro bono information technology and
business consulting to Tanzania.
Beneficiaries of IBM's citizenship work in Tanzania include the Tanzania Traffic Police;
Tanzania Library Services; Tanzania Postal Corporation; the
Tanzania Education and Research Network; the Registration,
Insolvency and Trusteeship Agency; the University of Dodoma, the
Africa Wildlife Foundation; the Tanzanian Association of Tour
Operators and the Arusha Institute of Accountancy.
In June 2011, IBM opened a
subsidiary office in Dar es Salaam as part a broad program of
investment in Africa covering the
creation of new facilities, offices, training, staffing and
recruitment, skills development, sales & marketing and
corporate citizenship. IBM has a direct presence in over 20
African countries including South
Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Mauritius, Angola, Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria.
About IBM
To find out more about IBM's African growth story
visit:
http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/presskit/34710.wss
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Contacts
Vera Rosauer
IBM Africa
+254 20 283 4000
veraros@ke.ibm.com
Jonathan Batty
IBM Growth Markets
+48 69393 5403
Jonathan.Batty@pl.ibm.com
SOURCE IBM