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MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT
FOR NOTICE:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2007-06-12
ISSUED BY: Moira Müller, Communications Officer
CTexT PROMOTES MULTILINGUALISM THROUGH MACHINE TRANSLATION
CTexT (Centre for Text Technology) at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University (NWU)
is currently involved in a text technology project to address a major practical problem facing
organisations. Many organisations have found that implementing the ideals of multilingualism in
everyday business is both complicated and expensive. They simply cannot deliver their communications
in all the official languages – much to the frustration of South Africans in general.
The Department of Arts and Culture, who deals with this very same challenge every day, has committed
itself financially to the development of a number of human language technologies with which to enable
government departments to improve and expand on their communications with the public.
CTexT, in cooperation with the University of Pretoria, has been appointed as primary service provider for
two of these projects. The first project entails the development of ten spelling checkers for all the official
languages (excluding English), as an aid to language practitioners. These spelling checkers will be
completed by the end of 2008 and distributed to government departments.
The second endeavour relates to the development of word translators for the translation of English text
to all the other official languages, as well as machine-aided translation tools for three language pairs.
The project spans three years, and the resulting tools will be made available to the general public in the
OpenSource domain by the end of 2009.
Other products developed at CTexT include language acquisition software packages for Afrikaans,
isiZulu, Setswana and isiXhosa. These multimedia software programs will enable a learner to acquire
the basic communication skills of a new language in approximately 45 hours and in the comfort of her/his
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own home or office. Included in the packages are listening, speaking, writing and reading exercises in
the target language, vocabulary, and even insight into the culture of the specific language group.
The Afrikaanse Speltoetser 3.0, Tesourus 1.0 & Woordafbreker were also developed by CTexT. Since
the first commercial Afrikaans spelling checker was developed at the PU for CHE in the nineties, the
lexicon has doubled and various human language technologies have been introduced to enable the
spelling checker to recognise a wide variety of compounds, proper names, acronyms and domain
specific terminology.
Other spelling checkers for indigenous languages have also been developed by CTexT in collaboration
with Unisa, UP and PanSALB as part of Microsoft’s Local Language Program. These include isiXhosa,
isiZulu, Sesotho sa Leboa and Setswana.
Human Language Technology (HLT) is a fast-growing yet relatively unknown field in South Africa. CTexT
aims to maintain and strengthen the local HLT industry in order to facilitate access to information
technology to all our citizens, thereby bridging the digital divide.
Who knows, perhaps one of these days it will be possible for all South Africans to communicate in their
own languages wherever they go.
END/
_______________________________________________________________________
Contact details for more information:
Moira Müller
(018) 299-1541
Moira.Muller@nwu.ac.za
For product information:
Bowline Distribution
0800 203 048
www.bowline.co.za
OR
Blue Tek Computers
(018) 297-0164
www.spel.co.za
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