Image: Western Australian government.
The Western Australian government is on the road to a digital future with the release of its inaugural information and communications technology, or ICT strategy.
The Digital WA strategy will give clear direction to government agencies in their planning, investment and use of ICT, driving the delivery of projects on time and on budget.
Using continuous advances in technology to lower the cost of government services for taxpayers, the whole-of-government Digital WA strategy aims to have 75 per cent of government-related public transactions completed online by 2020.
Supported by policies on cloud, disaster recovery, digital security, interoperability and digital services, the reforms aim to save time and money for individuals, businesses and communities and will include a single state government web portal.
WA Innovation Minister Bill Marmion said it was a practical vision to give West Australians easier access to quality services, whenever and wherever it was convenient for them.
He invited citizens to consider a future where they could access state government services “through a single web portal anywhere, anytime and on any device – your computer, mobile phone or tablet – without the need to attend or call a government office”.
“From simply paying bills online to obtaining the latest information and data on everything government that matters to you, that is the Digital WA promise once fully implemented.
“Digital WA will also help entrepreneurs and start-up companies flourish, as they use Government open data sources to produce new products and services to meet the evolving needs of the community,” he said.
Considerable savings are expected to be achieved through cost reductions from reduced waste and duplication; better informed decision; whole-of-government procurement improvements as well online service provision.
“The state government currently spends between $1 and $2 billion a year on ICT, a significant portion of the State Budget in anyone’s terms. Though saving money is not the strategy’s primary objective, Digital WA aims to cut ICT spending by 10 per cent – a potential saving of around $150 million a year for taxpayers. Some of the savings generated through the strategy are likely to be reinvested in delivering better services to the community.”
The strategy that will guide the state’s digital transformation over the next four years was created after extensive research both in Australia and overseas.
“In planning WA’s Digital Strategy document, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) referenced not only the digital strategies of other Australian states, but also international jurisdictions Mr Marmion said.
“This included a review of strategies from New Zealand, Canada, the UK, Singapore and several states in the USA. Discussions were also held with the Commonwealth’s Digital Transformation Office, and Service NSW.
“The review focussed principally on the policies, implementation and collaborative approaches used in other States and nations. This helped identify strategic issues and highlight priorities. Some jurisdictions had updated their digital strategies, enabling the OGCIO to incorporate this experience into the WA strategy, where applicable,” he said.
“We found that not just other Australian states, but other jurisdictions around the world, face many similar digital transformation challenges.
“What is unique to Western Australia is the impact of the State’s geographical size on the transformation, particularly in the field of telecommunications,” Mr Marmion said.
He said another unique consideration that informed the strategy was the state’s proximity to important trading partners in Asia, including aligned time zones, that make communications and trade easier.
