Government digital transformation: the battle for technological sovereignty
In the midst of noise that flowed between South Africa and the United States of America (US) there’s a hidden message about the future of governments.
In the US it started with a government office that was established by the Obama administration. The office launched in 2014 to improve the federal government's digital capabilities following difficulties that were experienced with the HealthCare.gov website. It brought some of the smart people from Silicon Valley to focus on addressing government challenges through tech. Fast forward to 2025 that same government office has been repurposed, into Department of Government Efficiency also known as DOGE, by the Trump administration and led by Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.
DOGE is also staffed by members of Silicon Valley with a heavy focus on young people from some of Elon Musk’s companies. WIRED has reported that their mission is to implement Trump AI-first agenda. Reports show that the team is trying to get access to data in order to improve how the US government operates through the use of AI. This is not new, part of the difference is that the current team is trying to develop systems internally with speed.
According to tech media reports the DOGE team is developing a custom generative AI chatbot for the US General Services Administration. At the core, the DOGE team is trying to modernise the US government using the same approach used in Silicon Valley to break things and build fast.
In South Africa, during the 2025 State of the Nation Address (Sona), President Cyril Ramaphosa acknowledged the need to use technology to improve government operations. Ramaphosa said, “There are global fundamental shifts underway that affect every aspect of human life. From the growing impact of climate change to rapid advances in artificial intelligence.”
These utterances were followed by an outline of how the South African government would use technology to make life better. Here’s how:
– Give South Africans access to government services anytime, anywhere, through a relaunched gov.za platform;
– Implementation of a digital identity system; and
– Streamlining funding for small businesses, unlocking venture capital for high-growth start-ups.
On the basis of what the President shared during Sona it seems more government services will be accessible online. Currently, some services can be accessed online. Citizens can now manage their taxes online and apply for schools using Department of Basic Education websites. All of these are great examples of how the citizens are able to able to interact with government online.
The President also indicated that the government’s online platform will be revamped. He promised that a newly launched platform will be underpinned by a digital identity system. In simple terms, South Africans will be able to log into any government system and be recognised based on their online identity. This may be useful in addressing fraud and other criminal activities committed with the use of ID cards. The digital identity system will also address red tape issues that create delays in the process of assisting citizens.
While this is a positive move by the government, it was not clear how it would be done. Currently, the government has no capacity to create great technology solutions. Professor Eldrid Jordaan after Sona said that Africans have capacity to solve their problems by developing their own systems.
Jordaan is someone who has experience in developing Civic Tech, tech solutions that address citizens' challenges. He founded GovChat, which was instrumental in enabling citizens to interact with government about Sassa grants. He fought a David and Goliath war with Meta around the use of their systems for civic tech. He now runs SUPPPLE an entity that develops systems for governments and getting them ready for the age of artificial intelligences. If there’s absence of skills to deliver government tech dreams there’s an option of public private partnerships that can deliver.
It was encouraging to note that the South African government is finally recognising the role of high growth startups. The President indicated that funding will be streamlined to small businesses there by unlocking venture capital for high-growth start-ups.
As part of this process, there’s a lot to learn from Musk’s DOGE, which is designated to use tech to modernise the US government.
There’s also a need to be very careful. It’s great to dream about AI, at the same time it’s important to remember who owns the technology infrastructure that drives AI.
Governments ought to be careful that the systems they adopt in the process of modernising may lead to state capture of sorts. It’s possible that governments that will use systems built elsewhere may be held hostage at some point. It’s important to understand that there’s a tech race underway. There’s no doubt that in future governments will be driven by tech and, therefore, decisions about who will build the tech infrastructure are key to avoid re-colonisation.
Wesley Diphoko is a technology analyst and Editor-In-Chief of FastCompany (SA) magazine.
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