The South African NGO sector is gathering momentum to petition the South African government to adopt free and open source software. The petition, to be sent to Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, the minister of public service and administration, calls on government to reduce the country's dependence on software imports.

The petition, started by Sangonet director David Barnard and the Internet Society's Alan Levin, says that as the largest user of software in the country, government needs to be promoting the free and open source software sector. By actively adopting FOSS wherever possible, government will effectively spur the growth of a local ICT sector and create a viable market for FOSS products and services.

"As a developing country, South Africa, along with all the countries on the African continent, needs you [the minister] and our Government to act as agents of positive change in our society and trigger shifts in the information and communications technology market dynamics, in order to favour the supply of local ICT content, support, skills and service providers, and to reduce our longstanding dependence on imports and the negative effects created by this dependence," reads the petition.

Barnard says they decided to start the petition because they felt that despite the government's publicly declared open source strategy, there has been a lack of momentum in adopting open source software.

The petition also calls on the minister to honour the declaration unanimously adopted at the Go Open Source Conference held in August 2005 when business, NGO and government leaders met to chart the way forward for open source software in South Africa.

Barnard says that while many NGOs are eager to use free and open source software there are still practical limitations to doing so. He says issues like limited access to FOSS support and compatible hardware make if difficult for organisations to switch to free software.

He says that so long as industry and government favour proprietary software the market dynamics will favour proprietary software. As the largest user of software in South Africa and the continent, the South African government has the power to alter those dynamics, he says.

"As long as government and the private sector primarily use proprietary software, there will be a barrier for civil society to procure hardware with FOSS pre-installed as well as all the required support and migration services required for greater FOSS/OC adoption."

The petition also warns that "multi-national proprietary ICT vendors are organising themselves to provide their software to civil society on a sponsored basis. We recognise that this is a way to keep us locked in to the status quo and dependent upon proprietary software, and to slow down broader adoption of FOSS/OC."

"We thereby call upon you and Government to act as positive agents of change to shift the dynamics of the ICT marketplace, enabling FOSS/OC to flourish, and begin to deliver its benefits to all."

The deadline for signatories is 22 September, 2006.