The Public Sector Manager December 2021 / January 2022

Page 32

FEATURE

*Writer: Silusapho Nyanda

Voice tech for all SA languages T

he Council for

CSIR and creates human-

TTS tools focus only on

their app, to obtain the

Scientific and

like voices from written

English and Afrikaans.

necessary licensing per-

Industrial Research

text.

Calteaux says that the

mission from the CSIR.

The CSIR’s research

Afrikaans TTS tools are

Once licensed, develop-

information more acces-

group leader for voice

largely based on Dutch,

ers of websites and other

sible to all South Africans

computing, Dr Karen Cal-

so do not necessarily get

online platforms can

through its Qfrency Text-

teaux, says the software

it right.

incorporate the technol-

to-Speech (TTS) product.

can be used on phones,

She adds that develop-

ogy to enable visitors to

computers and tablets.

ers used speech applica-

listen to the information

In a practical sense, a

tion programming inter-

available on the site in

South African languages

person who understands

face software to create

the language in which it

access to information

Tshivenda, for instance,

the end-user voices. A

is written.

in their mother tongue,

but is unable to read, will

voice is available for each

even if they are unable to

benefit from the system,

of the 11 languages.

read or if they have vision

which will ‘read’ the text

challenges.

to them in Tshivenda.

(CSIR) is helping make

The technology tool gives speakers of all 11

The Qfrency Text-to-

The technology is a first

Calteaux says software

make information more accessible to users who

development kit (SDK)

have reading impedi-

technology enables an

ments, such as poor vision,” says Calteaux.

Speech (TTS) product

for the country, in that

app developer who wants

was developed by the

existing South African

to integrate Qfrency into

32

“The TTS system can

The tool has proven

Public Sector Manager • December 2021 / January 2022


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