Image: Rachel Johnson.
The South Australian government has prioritised its service delivery through the use of information and communications technology (ICT) by announcing that it will overhaul its existing systems and services.
Due to the cyclical obsolescence of ICT, governments routinely throw their old tech in the trash in favour of new gear, which will cost the Jay Weatherill government $100 million on top of its annual spend of $260 million on cross-government ICT goods and services.
The government has called for expressions of interest (EOI) from industry to help provide the technology for public sector agencies.
The ever changing landscape of ICT has prompted the government the think about its long term future in delivering services to an increasingly digital savvy population.
As a result, Premier Jay Weatherill said the government will make a “bold change” to the way it buys technology services.
“As part of our economic plan for South Australia, we’ve set a priority of achieving growth through innovation,” Mr Weatherill said.
“Innovation” and “modernisation” are two key words that the government is using to illustrate its plan for better service delivery through technology, as it has invited the ICT industry to propose ideas that “add value” to the services delivered to the community.
Mr Weatherill said his government wants to create a leading ICT environment for the public service to make it more “mobile and adaptive” to deliver the best and most efficient services to South Australians.
“This is about capturing contemporary technology and solutions so that our public sector has the ICT it needs to do the best work possible,” Mr Weatherill said.
The government will use this call for EOIs to overhaul its existing procurement processes, which SA Public Sector Minister Susan Close said have “restricted the ability” for innovative ideas from the IT community from being taken up.
“This process will enable innovation while still adhering to the principles of fairness, equity and transparency,” Ms Close said.
She said this is all about using government purchasing to help create ICT services in South Australia that drive locally-based innovation and growth in the ICT industry.
According to the SA government, market approach documents are currently being prepared for release soon, and will include elements such as value for money, improved service delivery, economic development, employment opportunities, contribution towards the state government’s economic plan.
