Dept completes drafting bill

A DRAFT of the Digital Government Bill has been completed to empower Department of Information and Communication Technology to be the lead agency driving digital transformation in public sector and Papua New Guinea, a minister says.
Communications and Information Technology Minister Timothy Masiu said the Bill proposed, among other things, the establishment of standards and compliance measures for government digital services.
“As the minister responsible, I am looking forward to introducing the Bill to Parliament in August,” he said.
“While the draft digital government Bill has been going through the consultation process, the ministry recognises that some short-term goals need to be achieved.
“My ministry took to Cabinet to propose for the development of a secure data exchange platform that will enable various systems of government to not only talk to each other, but also talk to systems within the industry.
“Out of this, we are looking at simple but important services like digital ID (identification) verification services, TIN (tax identification number) and IPA (Investment Promotion Authority) verifications services.
“Through an open data policy provisioned within the Digital Government Bill, we anticipate that business houses and SMEs can plug in and access other relevant public data deemed critical for delivery of their product and services.”
Masiu said another key proposal his ministry recently took to Cabinet was for the use of cloud technology to deliver government digital services.
“The Department of ICT now has mandate and oversight on private cloud arrangements for Government and coupled with investments on cloud technology at DataCo PNG, we anticipate that cloud technology in-country will propel digital revolution to another level,” he said.
Masiu cautioned that the use of digital technology came with cyber security concerns.
“The government is aware of the risks associated with digital technologies and we are taking steps to ensure safe and secure cyber environment to build trust and confidence for our people to engage in digital activities such as e-commerce, SMEs and others,” he said.