Question NW1308 to the Minister of Home Affairs
15 May 2023 - NW1308
Tafeni, Ms N to ask the Minister of Home Affairs
What are the details of the progress that has been made in stabilising the system and network disruptions experienced at Home Affairs offices that render them non-operational?
Reply:
1. Network connectivity remains a challenge in the success of system implementation and stabilisation in the Department. The Department has implemented the following to address challenges: -
a) To review current Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with SITA
b) To be exempted from SITA in order to approach service providers directly
c) Procuring LTE network backup for each District.
d) Continue to replace copper links to fiber.
2. The Department is also engaging CSIR to achieve the following objectives to improve network connectivity and stabilising the system:
a) Review of Infrastructure, Network and Systems architectures to determine their adherence to the DHA Modernisation Programme, the DHA EA Principles, the DHA EA Policy and the Government Wide Enterprise Architecture.
b) Determine whether systems development, deployment, support, and maintenance are aligned to the best practices.
c) Determine whether infrastructure refresh, support and maintenance are executed in a manner that supports the DHA Modernisation Programme.
d) Conduct a thorough analysis of selected current and new system downtime incidents experienced by the DHA including the frequency, duration, and impact of each incident.
e) Review the DHA’s existing IT infrastructure, systems, and procedures, to assess their effectiveness in minimising and addressing system downtime.
f) Identify the root causes of selected system downtime incidents, taking into consideration factors such as hardware failure, software issues, cyber-attacks, network issues, human error, and other relevant factors.
g) Propose remedial actions to minimise future occurrences of system downtime, including technical, procedural, and training recommendations.
h) Provide a comprehensive report that outlines the findings of the investigation and the proposed remedial actions and present this report to DHA's Exco in a clear and concise manner.
i) Provide agreed to follow-up support or assistance to the DHA to ensure that the proposed remedial actions are implemented effectively and that system downtime incidents are minimised.
j) Timeously provide progress reports/documents to the DHA and the CSIR Executives as required.
END