Gauteng e-Govt dept, Vumacam look to augment tech partnership to tackle crime

Gauteng’s e-Government Department and technology-driven surveillance solutions provider Vumacam have highlighted the success, thus far, of their public-private partnership (PPP) of using technology solutions around the province to tackle crime and other issues, as they look to bolster this further.

The department leverages Vumacam-managed closed circuit television SafeCity cameras.

In Gauteng, Vumacam currently had 6 469 live cameras, 3 174 overview cameras and 3 295 licence plate recognition cameras strategically positioned around high-risk areas, Vumacam CCO Michael Varney said at a media briefing on November 7.

In terms of the PPP, data is gleaned from Vumacam’s network of cameras and camera alerts are sent to a Vumacam-managed operational centre to be assessed. In the control room, 99.5% of false alerts are filtered out, while 0.5% are escalated for live monitoring or dispatch of the South African Police Service or public security services.

Varney stressed that the cameras go further than tackling crime, as they also provided critical safety and environment information. This included safety and infrastructure information for roads, parks and recreation, electricity, law enforcement and emergency services.

Varney highlighted that achievements to date for the PPP included enhanced community safety owing to increased arrests.

Moreover, he said enhanced surveillance and data-driven insights had enabled law enforcement to improve their interception rates, respond faster and prevent some crimes before they escalated.

In terms of statistics, in the past 100 days, successes of the PPP include 104 arrests, 4 104 dispatches, 476 interceptions and 264 impoundments.

The response times have improved to an average of between five and ten minutes, from the previous average of 18 to 30 minutes.

Moreover, over recent months, the initiative has contributed to a 30% month-on-month improvement in crime interception rates, facilitating several arrests.

The briefing, held at 45 Commissioner Street in Johannesburg, included a visit to the network control room, showcasing the surveillance technology that is used as part of the province’s crime prevention efforts.

Looking ahead, Varney said Vumacam was aiming to densify its network of cameras in the province, targeting crime hotspots and especially reaching underserved areas such as townships, informal settlements and hostels.

Upwards of 1 000 new cameras are set to be rolled out in the next phase.

e-Government MEC Bonginkosi Dlamini averred that there had been considerable demand from communities in these areas to implement such solutions.

Varney said that community buy-in had proven favourable when the positive impacts of the solutions were realised.

He assured that cameras are installed and data collected in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act , to ensure people’s privacy is not compromised and so that the government can use evidence in court.

The PPP would also seek to protect critical infrastructure.

Continuous training and skills development of operators would also continue.

Existing technology would be enhanced, and new ones introduced.