Australia's Indigenous Data Sovereignty, Japan's trusted web, and the OECD's annual Digital Government Index
Edition #66 Data sovereignty is front and center of the digital government world this week at an individual, community and national level...
Our previous roundup focused on the responsibilities that come with using digital government tools. Our main stories looked at the UK’s Post Office scandal, and data collection by political parties ahead of the Indian election.
This week, on a related note, we look at data sovereignty. This too takes many forms - we see this addressed throughout our roundup in terms of indigenous data sovereignty (in Australia); in national data sovereignty (in France); and in personal data sovereignty (in Japan). Our overwhelming takeaway is that digital accessibility is not just about who a government collects data from, but what kind of data and in what form they collect it.
Our main stories this week:
In South Korea, a century-old headache is to end as the government digitizes paperwork
Australia’s Closing the Gap review calls for more attention on Indigenous Data Sovereignty
2023 OECD Digital Government Index
As a reminder, we have recently begun to expand our digital government coverage away from just Substack and onto Linkedin, Twitter and Instagram. For original content, audience engagement, and roundups of all our pieces, feel free to follow us over on those channels.
In South Korea, a century-old headache is to end as the government digitizes paperwork - Lee Ho-Jeong, Korea JoongAng Daily
South Korea’s president Yoon Suk Yeol has announced that all 1,500 of the government’s administrative service documents will be digitized, starting with 421 this year.
South Korea - consistently ranked as one of the world’s leading digital governments - has had a renewed push for digitization since the start of the year, with digital technology the seventh theme of a new plan to improve people’s livelihoods implemented by the President.
President Yoon suggested that digitizing even 30% of the 700 million government documents handled annually could save the country 1.2 trillion won ($900 million) per year.
The first step, says Yoon, is to break down silos between different departments, gathering information and data in a single channel for a “one-stop service” (likely on the government’s civil service portal, Government 24).
Our Take: Currently, South Korea’s documentation practices are underpinned by a 110-year-old personal seal certification system. We have covered how similar processes have hampered Japan in the past. While digitizing documents may be seen as low-hanging fruit - especially for one of the world’s leading digital governments - the continuation of President Yoon’s strong political support will be necessary to ensure cross-government buy-in and the success of the program.
Australia’s Closing the Gap review calls for more attention on Indigenous Data Sovereignty - Australian Productivity Commission
Australia’s Productivity Commission - the government’s independent research and advisory body - has called for the federal government to set up a Bureau of Indigenous Data (BoID) as part of efforts to institute indigenous data sovereignty.
The report forms a broader contribution to the National Agreement on “Closing the Gap” - overcoming the entrenched inequalities faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia.
The report calls for a greater commitment to supporting First Nations people in accessing government-held data, and helping them feed into its collection so that it better captures the values, cultural diversity, and social and structural contexts for First People communities.
The new bureau would be governed by an Indigenous Data Board, and tasked with developing data standards, managing existing datasets, and establishing new collections.
Our Take: It is important to recognize that data equality and accessibility is not just a question of who a government collects data from, but what kind of data and in what form they collect it. If set up, the BoID could serve as inspiration for governments tackling similar issues to support marginalized groups around the world.
2023 OECD Digital Government Index - OECD
The OECD’s annual digital government index - assessing 38 countries - saw Korea, Denmark and the UK recognized as the best performing digital governments in 2023.
Broadly, the report found that OECD countries are adept at establishing the foundations for a digital- and data-enabled government, but less so at monitoring efforts.
2/3rds of countries surveyed have in place dedicated leadership roles, governance arrangements and strategic instruments for data, but the report finds more must be done to enhance the mandate and oversight of these mechanisms.
AI also emerges as a key theme of the paper, with the OECD finding that countries have made considerable progress in establishing strategic approaches for its use in the public sector and adopting non-binding instruments for its ethical deployment. However, more can be done in using AI to proactively engage citizen needs, including at the level of the policymaking process.
GovTech News in Brief
Confusion after French government shoots down amendments supporting its own sovereign cloud strategy - Theophane Hartmann, Euractiv
The French government has struck down potential provisions to a bill that would force consulting companies working with the public sector to operate in sovereign cloud systems in order to protect citizen data.
Thailand’s PM clashes with central bank governor over $14bn handout plan - Mercedes Ruehl, Financial Times
The Thai Prime Minister’s plan to give a one-off digital payment to 50 million low-income citizens - which we first covered back in November - continues to drag on, with the Bank of Thailand’s governor now publicly criticizing the move.
“Focus on citizens, not tech”: Why smart towns can help ASEAN realize their bigger smart city ambitions - Marko Kanadi, GovInsider
A bottom-up approach to experimenting with “smart towns" can have knock-on effects across ASEAN, argues Marko Kanadi.
Australia’s digital ID may launch in July, here’s what to expect - Masha Borak, Biometric Update
Australia has a (tentative) launch date for its new digital ID program - an expansion of the existing MyGovID system - which would “allow users to choose their preferred digital ID provider for accessing government and private services”.
How Italy’s Government is using AI - Matt Stempeck, Democracy Technologies
Italy’s adoption of AI in government has been uneven in a testing political climate, says Matt Stempeck. But its use cases - from smart city sensors for Roman ruins to citizen-facing chatbots - may serve as inspiration for other countries.
How Japan’s “trusted web” could improve digital governance - Daichi Iwata and Takanori Fujita, World Economic Forum
The Japanese government is developing a new mode of digital governance, which aims to maximize mechanisms for trust as a basis for data distribution.
The Theory Behind the Practice
Government Digital Transformation 101 - Mia Hunt, Global Government Forum
Global Government Forum has a new podcast called “Government Transformed” - which discusses the digital transformation of government services and their challenges towards implementation.
This first episode of the podcast features Kevin Cunnington, former head of the UK Government Service, who talks about the benefits of digital transformation and the importance of digital identity.
Digital Public Infrastructure for the Public Good - Manuel Aguilera, UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose
University College London takes a deep dive into the world of Digital Public Infrastructure - including a brief history and modern examples of successful DPI, and the challenges of their implementation.
Could GovTech help rebuild trust through public innovation? - Stephan Mergenthaler and Sebastian Buckup, World Economic Forum
The GovTech market is set to be worth over $1 trillion by 2028 - according to the WEF - and provides a vital opportunity to reinforce trust between citizens and the state.
Revolutionizing Governance: AI-driven citizen engagement - Komal Goyal, Forbes
Komal Goyal outlines five key challenges in AI implementation for governance applications - from data security to skill shortages to a one-size-fits-all approach.
Upcoming GovTech Events
Digital Euro Conference - Digital Euro Association
The Digital Euro Association is hosting a conference on the landscape around the development of the Digital Euro, including the technological, economic, and governance design choices at stake.