A software piracy rate of 90% in Zimbabwe needs government intervention to help stem the problem, says a top Microsoft official.

Figures from the International Data Corporation (IDC) say that nine out of ten software products in Zimbabwe are counterfeit.

This is in stark contrast to global figures.

According to the IDC, about a third of all the world’s PC software is counterfeit. Meanwhile, in the likes of Mauritius, the software piracy rate is 50%.

Reasons for Zimbabwe’s high software piracy rates are not clear, according to Daniel Kamau, who is the anti-piracy lead for Microsoft West, East, Central Africa and the Indian Ocean Islands.

But Kamau has stressed that Zimbabwe’s government needs to help tackle the problem.

“The scale of piracy and counterfeiting means that it cannot be addressed by IT companies alone,” Kamau told ITWeb Africa.

“This is why we recently engaged ZIPO (Zimbabwe Intellectual Property Office) to explore how we can jointly address (the) software problem given its impact on innovation, job creation, and sustainable economic growth in Zimbabwe,” Kamau said.

ZIPO falls under the Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs.

Kamau, though, told ITWeb Africa that ZIPO requires adequate funding, dedicated staff and facilities to execute its mandate.

Nevertheless, Zimbabwe’s government could help stem software piracy rates in five key ways, Kamau said.

The first is to establish “a clear and consistent legal framework, taking into account the broader international context.”

Kamau further said government needs to “apply legislation with dedicated resources”, “increase public education and awareness around the problem”, co-operate at domestic and global levels, and lead by example by adopting an effective plan for procuring and managing software assets.