Mbabane — South Africa will spend between R2 billion to R5 billion on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastracture required to host a successful 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Zakes Mnisi of the Local Organising Committee said Monday that the country would provide all the technologies needed to execute the event.

"We will provide ICTs that contribute to the legacy [projects], which meet reasonable expectations of various user groups," he said at the Pan African ICT in Government Summit.

Some of the infrastructure to be put in place includes ICT solutions such as event management systems.

This will encompass software to manage the accreditation of delegates as well as transportation, travel and protocol systems.

About 4 000 people would require accreditation for the FIFA 2010 Soccer World Cup.

All stadiums will have ticket compounding points and accreditation centres. These accreditation centres would be as close as one kilometre away from each stadium.

Mr Mnisi said the LOC would also establish an International Broadcasting Centre (IBC), which would be the central hub of all broadcasting activities during the World Cup.

"All telecommunications transmissions from or to venues or non-venues will end and start at the IBC," he explained, adding the IBC centre would be a point of delivery for multilateral or unilateral signal broadcasters.

Encompassing 30 000 square metres, the IBC would also provide space for broadcasters to set up temporary newsrooms.

The Director for 2010 in the Department of Communications, Padiso Makolo, said reliable back-up power would be supplied for the IBC.

FIFA will allocate 3 million tickets for the World Cup but ICTs would enable those without tickets to watch the games in fan parks by sending live feeds to high definition big screen TVs.

"This event also provides an opportunity for government to accelerate the provision of robust, state-of-the-art ICT infrastrucre in the country."

Mr Makolo said FIFA had already provided the Department of Communications with a list of all the ICT requirements needed for the event.

Minister of Communications, Dr Ivy Matsepe-Cassaburri, has already assured the South African Cabinet that the requirements would be met.

Further to this, Mr Makolo said the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), which has been granted the broadcasting rights for the event, is now assessing the involvemnt of local and continental broadcasters in the event.

In terms of the legacy projects, the ICT infrastructure to be put in place for the FIFA 2010 World Cup would be used for other events after the soccer spectacle in June of that year.

"The upgrading of communications networks can also be used to lower telecommunication costs," he said.

The managing director of IBM South Africa, Mark Harris, said the private sector should look at how best it could help government put in place efficient ICT infrastructure for the event.

"We must look at providing things that government does not have such as skills and technologies," he explained, adding that private sector companies could use their global experiences to help government.

This would ensure the sustainable use of the ICT infrastructure post 2010, said Mr Harris.