[24 February 2026] The Department of Communications presented in Parliament on the outcomes of the Policy Colloquium on 24 February 2026.
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[23 December 2025] The Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies hosted industry, government and civil society stakeholders for a Policy Colloquium in Pretoria on 17 October 2025. The event was attended by representatives from mobile network operators, broadcasters, SMMEs, digital innovators, regulators, Parliament, academia, and civil society.
The Department has now released a feedback document which is intended to summarise the main inputs received and discuss how these align with the Minister’s priorities on meaningful connectivity, investment, inclusion, digital skills and better governance of the digital ecosystems.
DCDT Policy Colloquium Feedback Report
The document includes a draft roadmap for action based on feedback received, which the DCDT and its portfolio entities may take into account in prioritising policy activities for the rest of the current administration. It is a reaction to issues raised and not a commitment to undertake any action.
Immediate actions (January 2026 – June 2026)
- Institutionalise a quarterly digital economy stakeholder forum with the following suggested workstreams:
- Policy and regulation
- Infrastructure and investment
- Skills and human capacity
- Markets and innovation
- Governance, legislation and coordination
- Establish a priority working group, consisting of DCDT, COGTA and SALGA, to improve the implementation of the Standard Draft By-laws for the Deployment of Electronic Communications and Facilities in municipalities
- Convene relevant stakeholders for a rapid regulatory impact assessment to identify regulatory reform quick wins, particularly in relation to infrastructure deployment related
- Develop a concept document for a national evidence hub and engage with relevant stakeholders to establish a feasible plan towards institutionalisation
- Launch the process, as prescribed in Section 82 of the ECA, to define what meaningful access means in the South African context
Medium term actions (July 2026 – December 2027)
- Operationalise the Regulators Forum, integrating relevant competition, consumer protection, cybersecurity and data governance bodies.
- Finalise the review and updating of the National Digital Skills Framework and align public funding and activities.
- Establish and resource an investment desk and startup and innovation desk within the DCDT.
- Launch ICT sector regulatory sandboxes through support from the Regulators Forum.
- Develop and table a legislative coordination roadmap and ECA review proposal, which should include clear timelines for legislative amendments.
- Review, and amend as necessary, the deployment of the Universal Service and Access Fund, and improve transparency through the publication of an annual universal access report.
- Establish and maintain a coordinated South African position in regional and global digital forums.
Long-term strategic actions
- Gradually shift government’s regulation approach to enabling, client-centred regulatory architecture.
- Embed digital economy measurements in the national accounts and use it to prioritise initiatives in the digital economy and to set national targets for investment, inclusion and digital skills.
- Create a supportive environment for large scale private investment in AI-ready infrastructure, data centres and energy, using appropriate incentives, PPP platforms and transparent infrastructure pipelines.
It is important to note that information contained in this Report represents the views presented by the stakeholders on the day of the Policy Colloquium. It is not necessarily a reflection of the Minister’s or Department’s views and should not be interpreted as official government positions on the various issues discussed.