Zimbabwe's government has set aside over US$6 million towards developing Over the Top (OTT) applications delivered over the internet.

Last week the country's ICT minister Supa Mandiwanzira confirmed that the funds would be made available to those interested on the development of OTT services to rival social media platforms including Twitter, Viber, WhatsApp and Facebook.

"The US$6 million innovation fund is meant to support the advancement of technology in general and over the top initiatives in particular," Mandiwanzira said.

The government wanted locals to emulate innovation that has characterised Silicon Valley in the United States, Mandiwanzira says.

In December 2016 a group of ten Zimbabwe students visited Silicon Valley, under the auspices of the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education's STEM (Science and Technology Engineering and Mathematics) initiative.

Mandiwanzira says the purpose of the visit was to expose students to the practical application of technology which could be replicated locally in Zimbabwe. "I have no doubt that we can get some positive results because the talent is there... the innovation programme will initially scout youth in all major cities in the country.".

According to the minister, the initiative already has the buy-in from all the country's telecommunication firms who have agreed to contribute at least one percent of their revenue towards that technological innovation.

Last year, authorities witnessed a wave of unprotected national protests organised via social media.

The rise in the use of OTT services led to an outcry by local mobile companies who requested a ban on these services, fearing a negative impact on their revenue.

The ICT minister is understood to have turned down the request.