South Africa’s digital divide continues to threaten economic development. But this divide is not just about connectivity – it is about whether access translates into meaningful opportunities for young people: learning, employment, and participation in an economy that is already digital by default.
This challenge was at the heart of a panel discussion on digital inclusion, presented in partnership with Vodacom at the Trialogue Business in Society Conference.
Digital inclusion as a business imperative
Andisa Ntsubane, marketing executive: brand, marketing and communications at Vodacom, opened the session by framing digital inclusion as both a business imperative and a societal responsibility.
“Most successful companies in the world solve problems,” she said. “Africa has the most problems – we represent the single largest opportunity to solve real problems and derive commercial value from it.”
While connectivity is critical, it is not the whole story.
“A child sitting in a school with Wi‑Fi but no device is not digitally included. A teacher with a connected classroom but no training is not digitally empowered. A young person with a matric certificate but no digital skills is not ready for the economy that is already here,” said Ntsubane.
For Vodacom, connectivity is the doorway – but what truly matters is what’s on the other side.
With this in mind, Vodacom supports 39 Schools of Excellence and 39 early childhood development centres across South Africa – not just with cable installation, but also with computer labs, integrated whiteboards and ICT coordinators on the ground.
In addition, Vodacom is eradicating pit latrines and placing psychosocial workers within schools. These steps address trauma and restore dignity to learners, creating a more enabling learning environment.
Vodacom’s Youth Academy equips young people with digital skills, many of whom are then placed as ICT coordinators in the schools Vodacom supports. “Beneficiaries thus become enablers,” said Ntsubane.
Vodacom’s long-term approach to digital inclusion is anchored in education and gender empowerment and delivered through sustained partnerships across the public, private and nonprofit sectors.
Why partnerships are non-negotiable
For Takalani Netshitenzhe, director of External and Regulatory Affairs at Vodacom and Chairperson of the Vodacom Foundation, partnerships are a must-have. “Without them, we simply cannot solve societal challenges,” she pointed out.
Vodacom’s work is closely aligned with government priorities, but that alignment does not come without friction. “Government systems are a bit slower than those in the private sector,” she acknowledged. As a result, the Vodacom Foundation has learned the importance of patience to ensure projects are not abandoned, and budgets are not lost when delays occur.
Louis Taylor, the director responsible for partnerships in the Department of Basic Education, also emphasised the importance of collaboration, particularly given that the DBE mainly focuses on the basics of education delivery. This includes feeding eight million learners every day and replacing 4,000 pit latrines with proper ablution facilities.
The reality, he said, is that around 80% of learners in Quintile 1, 2 and 3 schools touch a computer for the first time when they go to university or start a job. “This is a massive disadvantage – but the government cannot close this gap alone,” he said.
What makes partnerships effective, Taylor argued, is thinking holistically. “It’s not throwing money at a school – it’s an integrated approach. You can’t give a child a device without training the teacher to teach them how to use it. You can’t give connectivity to a school without ablution facilities. Vodacom gets this right.”
Takalani Netshitenzhe, director of External and Regulatory Affairs at Vodacom and chairperson of the Vodacom Foundation, talks to Louis Taylor, the director responsible for partnerships in the Department of Basic Education at the Trialogue Business in Society Conference 2026.
Where inclusion breaks down
Staff Sithole, founder and CEO of TechnoGirl Trust, brought the discussion back to the lived realities of under‑resourced communities.
“Digital inclusion assumes the existence of basics – infrastructure, devices, digital literacy,” she said. “But in many communities, those basics simply don’t exist.”
Learners often lack access to computer labs and devices at home. “Parents are worried about what their children will eat tomorrow – not whether there’s a laptop in the house,” Sithole said. Digital exclusion often happens early and has real consequences if university and bursary applications are online-only.
For Sithole, certain fundamentals must be non‑negotiable if young people are to avoid being locked out of the economy. One of these is subject choice. “In the TechnoGirl programme, your success depends on your taking maths. It doesn’t matter what you want to be. Mathematics literacy is a non‑starter,” she warned.
She also raised concerns about teacher training. “We can’t keep producing teachers, but digital literacy isn’t part of it; integration of ICT as part of pedagogy is not included.”
The affordability barrier
An audience poll identified affordable devices and connectivity as the greatest gap between access and inclusion – a finding Netshitenzhe agreed with. “Affordability is the main issue,” she admitted.
Around 50% of Vodacom’s customers still use 2G devices – but while Vodacom does not manufacture devices and cannot control handset pricing, it does manufacture data bundles. To improve affordability, Vodacom has introduced personalised pricing and continues to zero‑rate key government and education platforms.
Encouragingly, smartphones priced under R2 500 are no longer taxed as luxury items, though Netshitenzhe believes this exemption should apply to all smartphones.
Pathways to employment
Sympathone Shimange, a graduate of Vodacom’s Youth Academy and now an instructor, illustrated what inclusion looks like when it works.
The “girl from Giyani” struggled to find work after graduating, then enrolled in the Youth Academy. “The programme helped me translate knowledge into opportunity,” she said. “Digital inclusivity changed my life.”
She had never been exposed to technology before enrolling – an experience she now sees reflected in many of her learners. “When you enrol and teach them, and take them through the programme, we don’t only provide the basics. We believe continuous support is very important.”
When digital inclusion is done properly, the impact multiplies.
“You really see what digital inclusion done properly, with consistent support and practical work, trickles through families, communities. Now they can start their own business or go on to be employed. Look at me!”
