Evaluating the South African Software Industry as a Key Component for Economic Development using an Irish Framework

This study takes a critical look at how the South African (SA) software industry can be successful in serving as a key component for economic development. The conceptual framework used by Heavin et al. (2003) in investigating the emergence and evolution of the Irish software industry is used as a guide to investigate the South African software industry. Firstly, we investigate how positive changes can be stimulated with IT applications, how previous studies have been bridging the IT adoption gap and the role that can be played by the use of Open-Source software (OSS) in enhancing the South African software industry. Then, the study investigates the impact of the SA geographic environment, endogenous and exogenous factors on the SA software industry. A key trend emerging is the need for building a culture of diligence, improving education, creativity and flexibility. The study also looks at the need for improving quality of products of the SA software industry. The study has shown that the South African software industry could learn a lot from the Irish software industry. A strong barrier to this vision of enhanced software industry is ignorance. Education is therefore a key towards removing this ignorance and opening eyes to the significant amount of opportunities for excellence in the society. Finally, the study proffers recommendations on the way forward for the SA software industry towards being successful in serving as a key component for economic development.

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