Concerns over outdated technology and the expiry of key software licences have sparked debate within the Bulawayo City Council (BCC), with councillors warning that the situation is disrupting service delivery and weakening revenue collection. The issue is contained in the latest council report under the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) section. Councillor Mxolisi Mahlangu warned that expired system licences were undermining council operations and called for urgent reforms to modernise the local authority’s IT infrastructure.
“Council should acquire a system that integrates most of its functions. We should upgrade our IT systems, go paperless and adopt a coordinated online platform,” he said. He also urged council to engage a single service provider to ensure that system licences are renewed on time.
When licences lapse, billing processes are disrupted, revenue collection is delayed and staff are forced to rely on manual systems, which councillors say are slow and inefficient. In previous instances, the failure of such systems has reportedly resulted in significant revenue losses. CouncillorNtandoyenkosi Ndlovuquestioned why council continued to rely solely on the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system despite its limitations.
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Meanwhile, Councillor Mmeli Moyo proposed that the ICT section be upgraded into a fully-fledged department to improve efficiency. “I felt that the section lacks an innovative space to effectively execute most of its functions,” he said. Ward 26 councillor and committee chairperson Mpumelelo Moyo warned that licence expirations could have a direct impact on service delivery across the city. Responding to the concerns, Assistant Financial Director Isaac Matare said council was currently being granted only 30 minutes of scheduled system access while awaiting licence renewal.
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