The City of Cape Town’s journey with First Technology Group

The City of Cape Town has successfully modernized its digital systems through a partnership with First Technology Group, reshaping how municipal staff work and serve 5 million residents. For years, outdated technology created barriers to productivity and collaboration. By 2021, the situation became critical—the city’s previous enterprise agreement had lapsed in 2016, forcing continued use of aging systems. The global shift to remote work made modernization a practical necessity. Cape Town published a tender for a comprehensive overhaul, seeking a wholesale reimagining of its digital workplace rather than incremental fixes.

First Technology Group, partnering with subsidiaries BUI and Galdon Data, won the contract and transformed operations over 24 months. Staff gained flexibility to work from anywhere on any approved device. Collaboration tools that once operated in silos now function as an integrated ecosystem. Service turnaround times improved, and departments began working more fluidly together. Enterprise-grade device management brought security uniformity, modern cloud infrastructure provided real-time monitoring, and a unified communication platform became the central collaboration hub.

The partnership succeeded because the City and First Technology Group functioned as a single team rather than a traditional client-vendor relationship. Both organizations shared responsibility, learned from each other, and made decisions based on genuine operational needs. The results proved measurable—infrastructure costs declined, departments experienced exceptional uptime, governance improved, and teams broke down long-standing silos. Confidence grew as large virtual council sessions now run seamlessly.

For other South African municipalities considering similar transformations, Cape Town’s experience offers clear lessons. Put user needs at the center of every decision, establish a coherent technology view rather than addressing transformation piecemeal, and foster shared learning across IT and business teams. Looking ahead, the City continues evolving its platform. Remote work is permanent, and the municipality is already experimenting with AI-powered chatbots and exploring integration into service delivery. Cape Town’s journey shows what becomes possible when clear strategy, capable partners, and user-centered design converge.