Bisho — Eastern Cape Premier Nosimo Balindlela says information is a vital tool to enable people to fight poverty and unemployment.

Ms Balindlela was speaking here at the weekend during the official launch of a Walk-In Training Centre by Public Service and Administration Minister Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi.

The second to be launched in the country, the Walk-In Training centre will offer information technology (IT) training, as government has identified IT as key to improved service delivery in the public service.

Government launched the first in Mpumalanga in February.

This is a joint venture between the public service and administration department, the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) and the provincial government.

This after SITA identified a strategy to accelerate skills development among government officials through the establishment of these centres in strategic regions in the country.

"We believe that the concept of Walk-In training centers is unique, as it provides us with a real opportunity to take a step towards bridging the digital divide and bringing modern communication services within for people," said Ms Balindlela.

Minister Fraser - Moleketi said the centres played a critical role towards government efforts to close down the gap between the two economies [first and second].

She also added that the centres were about bringing IT services in previously disadvantaged areas, where they were needed most.

"All public servants should have access to computers, we need to use different forms of technology in a creative way," she added.

She encouraged the broader communities to visit the centre and familiarise themselves with the use of technology.